


Sinful Desires

by Faindessiness



Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Canon X OC - Freeform, Demon AU, Demon x OC, Demon!Xigbar, Developing Relationship, F/M, Incubus x OC, Love/Hate, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Religious Themes, Xigbar is a little shit but we still love him, mentions of other canon characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-26
Updated: 2020-09-23
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:54:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 23,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24924199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Faindessiness/pseuds/Faindessiness
Summary: Áine recently moves into her new home, hoping to start a new life. She believes she's the only one who lives inside the house, however she realizes that she is not alone. A demon lurks in the shadows, waiting to claim the girl's soul as his prize. However he ends up compromising his own mission, and for what purpose?I can't write summaries.
Relationships: Xigbar/OC
Kudos: 15





	1. The New House

Áine placed the last of the boxes in the living room, letting out an exhausted sigh. "That's everything." She said to herself. Áine recently bought a new house, and today was the day she decided to move into her new home. With the help of her older sister, Saoirse, she was able to bring all of her belongings and new furniture into her new home. Saoirse entered the house, dusting her hands off and stood next to her younger sister, asking her,

"Well, you got everything?"

"Uh huh."

"That's good."

Áine looked around the house the house. She never got a proper tour of her home, and Saoirse hadn't seen what her sister's house even looked like. When Áine first came to get a tour, she noticed that the man showing her around was acting a little suspicious. It made Áine a little concerned, believing that there was something about the house that nobody had told her. She looked up online to see if anything bad had happened in the area or in the house, and nothing was reported. Perhaps the man was just an anxious guy.

"Hey sis, you wanna get a look around the house?" asked Áine.

"Didn't you get a tour?"

"Yeah, but the guy kinda rushed me into buying the house as soon as I got here. I didn't really get a good look around it. I've only been in here and one of the bedrooms."

"Alright, let's go look around then." Saoirse said. "I just got to your house, too."

As the sisters made their way upstairs, Saoirse asked,

"Why did the guy rush you with the house tour?"

Áine shrugged. "I dunno. He seemed pretty anxious, too. It's like there was something he wanted to tell me but he couldn't. I looked online to see if there was something up about the house, but I got nothing."

"Well if it turns out this house is haunted, you better move out."

"I will."

The sisters took a tour of the upper part of the house, commenting on how nice it appeared to be. They didn't notice anything strange or off about the place. Saoirse did check a couple of times if there were things in the closet, such as dead animals or something worse. Thankfully, there was nothing inside of the empty closets. A couple of times Saoirse also knocked on the walls to check if they were hollowed out. After finishing up their tour of the upstairs, the two went back down to look at the rest of the place. They checked around the kitchen, two extra rooms, a bathroom, and another closet. It seemed like that the house was in good conditions and perfectly fine. Suddenly, Áine noticed one door they hadn't opened.

"Hey sis?"

"What's up?"

"We didn't go in the basement." Áine pointed at the door.

The woman snapped her head to the direction of where the basement door was. She blurted out, "Oh, hell no."

"What's wrong?"

"Basements are usually a bad sign. I bet you there's a dead body down there."

Áine gasped in horror at the very thought there could actually be a corpse down there. Was that why the man was so anxious and jittery? Saoirse let out a laugh, patting her little sister's back as she assured her,

"I'm just kidding! But seriously, there could be something bad down there. I'll go down there with you just in case some crazy psycho is living down there."

"Promise you won't leave me alone down there."

"Áine, I would never do that to you."

To assure her little sister she wouldn't betray her, Saoirse went over to the door and opened it. All they could see was pitch darkness. Luckily, there was a light switch to the right side. Saoirse turned the light on, motioning her hand at the staircase and said with confidence,

"Look, we got light."

Still hesitant, Áine stood in place. Saoirse rolled her eyes and sighed.

"Okay, I'll go down first, you follow behind me. Okay?"

"Y-yeah."

The older sister descended down the steps as Áine followed behind. To their surprise, the basement was completely empty, say for a few pipes and dust. There didn't seem to be anything out of the ordinary. The two walked around the area, checking for anything suspicious. To their relief, there was not a single thing out of place.

"Well, what do you know. There's nothing. Not a dead body or anything like that."

"Saoirse!"

"Look, at least it's not dimly lit down here and some crazed murderer is also waiting in the darkness to come out and get you. Let's be thankful that it's just empty."

Áine nodded her head, though she felt like there might be something down there. She hoped that she was wrong and didn't stumble upon it later in the future. Noticing her sister's discomfort, Saoirse said,

"Hey, c'mon. Let's go back upstairs. I'll help you unpack your stuff."

"Thanks, sis."

The sisters returned back upstairs, shutting the basement door and locking it. They began unpacking Áine's items, taking them upstairs to her new bedroom. Saoirse was jealous she got a whole house to herself, though she was glad that Áine was finally moving on her own and making the first steps of becoming independent. Áine had always been so dependent on others, often being a little clingy towards her older sister. It didn't help that Áine was shy and nervous all the time. This was not only a big change for Áine, but for the rest of the family. Her parents had always wanted her to go to a big college and move out of the state, or even the country.

Áine didn't want to go to college. She wanted to stay at home, living her life peacefully without ever interacting with strangers in person. She couldn't handle the stress and anxiety of speaking with other people. She was never a people person anyways. Saoirse didn't blame her sister. Their parents had always been so hard on Áine ever since she was little. It was always Saoirse that stood up for her younger sister whenever their parents got after her or made comments about her. If she could, she would have moved out of the house long ago, taking Áine with her, but sadly she didn't have that power at the time. Besides, Áine was an adult now. It was her choice to make decisions on her own, not her. The afternoon went by and they finished up decorating most of the house. Though it seemed like the house had already had some decorations, such as crosses and religious antiques. Áine wondered if the old home owners forgot them. She felt bad for keeping them, however she also liked them. It made her feel at ease.

Once everything was unpacked, the sister's had lunch together. In the dinning room, the girls conversed with one another. As it was growing closer to evening, Saoirse said,

"Well, I better get going. My girlfriend is going to be upset if I'm not home on time."

"Sorry if I ruined your plans with her." Áine apologized.

"Don't apologize, your my sister and family comes first. Except with mom and dad. Besides, she knows how much I care about you, and I want you to know that too."

A smile appeared on the girl's face. She hugged her sister in a warm embrace.

"Thanks, sis."

"Don't mention it. Oh, and one more thing. If mom and dad call, don't pick up. And if a stranger tries to break into your house, use a knife and stab them multiple times or kick them where it hurts real bad. Got it?"

"Yeah, yeah."

"I mean it!"

"Okay, I will!"

Saoirse smirked. "Good."

The older sister grabbed her stuff, bidding her little sister farewell. Áine waved goodbye, watching sadly as her sister left. Now she was all alone. Áine was nervous being alone in a new place. She wasn't sure if she could get used to it. She told herself she would be okay and that she couldn't always rely on others all the time. Not enjoying the silence, Áine turned the TV on to a random channel, pacing around the room. She noticed some of the crosses that were hanging on the wall. Áine stared at them for a while, then cupped her hands together in prayer.

"Please lord...please help me mature and become an independent person...please guide me...please..."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That night, Áine had gotten herself ready for bed. She turned on one of the closet lights to give her some light in the pitch darkness. She was still afraid of the dark, not wanting to see something that wasn't supposed to be there. The girl grabbed her headphones, turning on some music. She made sure it wasn't too loud so it wouldn't damage her ears, but loud enough to drain out the noise in the background. Áine also had the TV on just to calm her nerves. The girl began drifting off into slumber, listening to her music. Finally, sleep had taken her, entering her dream world.

In there, her mind wandered to various places and ideas, uncertain how things would turn out. Everything seemed normal in her dream world, unaware that the weird things happening in there were just normal, that is until her mind noticed something off. In one dream, she was in a large crowd with friends she had never met, but apparently she knew them. In the crowd, somebody caught her attention. He seemed...out of place. The way he looked at her intensely frightened her. It didn't seem like he belonged in the dream. It was also creepy how the stranger was so detailed while everyone else seemed like a blur. The way he was also staring at her made her feel uncomfortable.

Áine's dream ended up changing, and the strange man was gone. She was unaware she was still dreaming. Áine still thought everything was normal. Now, she was with her older sister and her sister's girlfriend. Saoirse was in some kind of dance off against some random guy whom she had never met before. Áine was cheering for her sister to win, along with the rest of the crowd. Everything seemed alright, until Áine noticed something out of the corner of her eye. She panicked once more when she saw the same man again. This time he was a little closer. Áine wasn't certain if he was real or not, or if her mind was just made him up.

To her horror, he began approaching her. That was when she woke up in a cold sweat. The TV was still on, and so was the closet light. She looked around, noticing it was still night time. When she checked the time, she noticed it was exactly 3 in the morning. Being super religious and superstitious about that time, the girl immediately went back to sleep, turning her music on full blast. She closed her eyes tightly, telling herself it was just a bad dream and everything would go back to normal. Once she went back to sleep, it would be morning and she wouldn't have to worry about a thing. As she listened to her music, her mind began to drift away to sleep. Áine calmed down, telling herself she wouldn't have these dreams anymore. It was just her being scared of being alone. Everything was going to be alright in her new home. The dreams would go away. They'll be gone by the next week.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few days passed by, and Áine continued to have the same dream over and over. Rather, she continued to see the same man in her dream. She didn't recognize him, nor understand why he was there. Did he symbolize something? Who was he? Why is he following her in her dreams? What does he want with her? Áine was too scared to go online and do research, fearing the answers she would seek. Instead, Áine just kept a cross with her at all times, keeping it in her hands as she went to sleep. Sometimes she never woke up in the middle of the night, but some nights she did. One night, she woke up and the cross was placed on her night stand, which she knew she did not put there.

There was also one night where she was wearing her cross necklace, and it was also placed on her night stand. Things were only just beginning to get even worse. Some nights Áine felt someone was lying beside her, wrapping their arm around her and pulling her close. When she woke up, she would find herself alone in the bed with nobody else in sight. It not only frightened how she was alone whenever she woke up, but how incredibly hot she felt, as if she was on fire. There were also a few times when it felt like someone was kissing her. She would wake up once again to find herself alone. Áine thought about calling the police, but decided against it as they would not believe her story. The girl wanted to tell somebody about these experiences, but who could she tell? If she told Saoirse, she would probably tell her that she was just stressed out about moving away. Saoirse wasn't big of a believer in the supernatural or super religious like her little sister was. Áine didn't want to think it was some kind of entity, rather it was just her imagination, but why does it feel so real? Why is that man always in her dream? Why won't he just leave her alone? 

The paranoia was getting to the girl so much she wasn't sleeping as much. She would just be on her phone or watch TV. Things didn't get better though. She was starting to become jumpy at the slightest sounds, seeing things in the corner of her eye, and suspicious at almost everything that she saw or heard. Áine couldn't handle it anymore. She just wanted it to stop. She wanted to move out, but at the same time, she felt like it was just her being anxious about being alone in a new place. She had to tell someone. Maybe Saoirse will understand her.

Áine decided that she would go visit her sister and tell her what was going on. Early in the morning, Áine got into her car, driving to her older sister's house. She had texted her older sister earlier that she was going to come by to tell her something, however she didn't say what it was. Áine arrived at her sister's house, knocking on the door. Saoirse opened the door. She smiled at her little sister, only for it to fade when she saw her expression.

"My god, what happened to you?"

Áine entered the house, rubbing her eyes.

"Sis, I need to tell you something."

"Did someone hurt you?! Oh, when I get my hands on him, I'm gonna-"

"Saoirse, please let me explain."

The woman sighed, folding her arms and nodded her head.

"What is it you wanted to tell me?"

Áine sat down on the couch, feeling incredibly nervous to tell her sister what had been going at the house for the past few months.

"Promise me you won't laugh?"

"I won't. Just tell me what the hell is going on!"

"Ever since I moved into that house...I began having weird dreams. Like...they're not the same, but there's always this man in my dreams. He's always there watching me. I don't know who he is or if he's a symbol of something in my life, but he's always in my dreams! He won't go away or leave me alone! He just keeps smiling at me like he's taunting me!"

"Slow down, what do you mean there's a man in your dreams?"

Áine let out a sigh. "There's a man in my dreams that just keeps appearing. I keep waking up at 3 in the freaking morning and when I go back to sleep, he waits for me there. Sometimes he doesn't even come back. I put crosses in my bed, and they always end up on my night stand, and the necklace you gave me, too. That ends up on the night stand. I wear it to bed every night. I never, ever take it off! Ever!"

Saoirse sat next to her sister, listening intently. 

"What's worse is that he's so clear, not like, clear as in you can see through him, but like how I see you. Everyone else in my dreams are kinda blurry, but when I see him, he looks so clear!"

"What does this man look like?" Inquired Saoirse.

"He's...he's taller than me. I dunno how tall. He has a scar on his left cheek and he wears an eye patch on his right side. I don't know why, I guess he thinks it looks cool or something. His hair is long, dark and he's got white streaks. His eye...oh my goodness...his eye."

"What's wrong with his eye?"

"It's...it's so golden...it's so gold. I hate looking at it. I hate looking at him...he always smiles at me like he's gonna do something. It's like he's taunting me every time he get's closer. I'm scared if he gets closer something bad will happen."

The room was silent for a moment. Áine began to burst into tears. Saoirse held her sister, rubbing her back and trying her best to comfort her.

"Áine, I don't know what to say. I told you if that house is haunted to move out, but it could be you being paranoid about being alone. But then again, I-"

Saoirse stopped mid sentence when she noticed something on her sister's neck. She pointed at it and asked, "What is that?"

"What?"

"On your neck? What the heck is that?"

Áine rubbed her neck, saying with a hint of worry in her voice, "I don't feel anything."

"Áine, you got a fucking bite mark on your neck!"

Quickly, Áine turned her phone on to the camera mode. Her eyes widened when she saw the bite mark on the right side of her neck. When did this happen? Áine would have felt that, wouldn't she? She felt the hugging and the kissing, but she never felt anybody bite her during her sleep. Did he get close and bite her in one of her dreams? How did Saoirse notice it first and not Áine?

"You're not seeing anyone, are you?"

"Sis, you know I'm socially awkward! I can't even talk to a guy without stuttering like a moron! I don't know how this happened!"

Quickly, Saoirse took her sister's wrist and rushed her to the bathroom. She waited outside and demanded, "Look, just check and see if you got any other marks or scratches. If you do, you tell me."

Áine closed the bathroom door, removing her clothes. She stared intensely at the mirror, checking her body for anything. There was nothing. Not a single scratch or bite mark. It was just on her neck. When did she get it? How did she get it? She couldn't ever recall how she could have possibly gotten it. Did it happen in one of her dreams and she doesn't remember? What is she going to do with it now? Áine put her clothes back on, telling her sister,

"There weren't any on my body."

"None?"

"None. Just on my neck." The girl lowered her head sadly. "Sis...I'm scared. I don't know what to do. I understand if you don't believe me-"

"Oh, I believe you. I don't know if that house is haunted or not, but if it is, you better move your ass outta there. You can come back here or find another home. I don't want you staying there any longer. You could also call someone to cleanse the house, but that'll just piss whatever the heck is at the house. It's your call, not mine."

Áine thought for a moment. What if the man followed her into her dreams here? What if it's only at that house and not here? Maybe she was safe here. 

"S-Saoirse?"

"Yeah?"

"C-can I stay here for tonight? Just for tonight."

"Of course. You can sleep in the living room, the guest room, or-"

"I'll sleep on the couch." Áine went back to the living room, lying down on the couch.

"You get some rest. If you need anything, tell me. Okay?"

Áine smiled, a hint of guilt in her eyes. "Thanks, sis."

"Don't look so gloomy, Áine. It's not your fault that whatever is there is messing with you. I'm not letting any demon mess with my baby sister."

Áine giggled. She closed her eyes, letting out a final, "thank you." Saoirse smiled at her sister, ruffling her hair. She then walked away, leaving the girl by herself in the living room. As Áine attempted to fall asleep, she told herself that she was safe at her sister's place. The man can't reach her here. He can't bother her anymore. He's far away, stuck inside that house. Áine repeated the same thing over and over in her head, and once she could no longer remain awake, she fell fast asleep, catching up with what little rest she had gotten.


	2. The Man in Her Dreams

Áine awoke the next morning, feeling more refreshed than she had ever been for the past few days. She couldn't remember the last time she had a peaceful slumber ever since she moved into her new house. The girl got up from the couch, letting out a yawn and stretching out her arms. Áine smelt some steam coming from the kitchen. Áine made her way there and found Saoirse at the stove. She wasn't certain what her sister was making, but it smelt good. As Áine went over to sit down, Saoirse noticed her sister and greeted her.

"Morning, sleepy head."

"Morning."

"Did you get any sleep last night?"

"Yeah."

"The man didn't appear in your dreams, did he?"

"Nope. He wasn't there at all." Áine spoke with a joyful tone.

"That's good." Saoirse commented. "Oh, I made some pancakes. I'm making scrambled eggs right now, so you'll have to wait until those are done."

"Okay."

Áine waited for a moment, then she got up from her seat, getting a plate of pancakes. Meanwhile, Saoirse was humming to herself. As Áine returned back to her seat in the dinning room, she took her cellphone and checked her notifications. Just a few announcements from apps and updates from said apps. It was almost 9:30. Áine ate her breakfast, listening to her sister hum a familiar melody. Minutes passed by and Saoirse finished with the scrambled eggs. She turned to Áine and said with a firm tone,

"Hey. You better move out of that house as soon as you can."

"I will." Áine replied softly.

"I mean it."

"I will! It'll just take awhile, though. I mean...we just got all of my stuff out, so putting it all back is gonna take awhile. Looking for another house is a whole other process, and-"

"Áine, I know that's going to take a while, but you need to get the hell out of here. If you want, you can stay here for a couple of days until you find another place."

"Th-thank you."

"I'm your big sister, Áine." Saoirse assured her. "Your my family, and I'll do what I can to help you out. Okay?"

The girl nodded her head. She was grateful to have Saoirse as her big sister. She had always taken care of her ever since she was little. It was always her big sister that was looking out for her. Áine felt guilty that her sister had to cancel plans whenever she needed help with anything. But Saoirse always told Áine that she didn't need to feel guilty whenever she needed any help from her because she cared about her. Family always came first. But how much longer until Saoirse is fed up with her constantly depending on her? When will she say that enough is enough?

"So, when will you be leaving?"

"Dunno." Áine replied. "Not real soon. Maybe when I'm done eating."

"You don't have to go immediately." 

"I know."

Saoirse grabbed herself a plate of pancakes and scrambled eggs. She then made her way to the dining table, sitting across her younger sister. 

"You're gonna have to find a way to cover that bite mark."

"I dunno how." Áine placed her hand where the bite mark was located. "I can't put a scarf around it. I could wear a turtle neck, but they don't sell any during the summer or spring time."

"You could look online." Saoirse suggested.

"Well, I don't plan on going out anytime soon, but at the same time I don't want to be inside of that house."

"If you want, I could go over and-"

"No, it's okay. Besides, I don't think your girlfriend would be happy that you're spending less time with her."

"She understands why I'm always concerned about you."

After a brief moment of silence, Áine asked hesitantly "Did you...tell her about...?"

"I told her that something was going on at the house and that you weren't feeling well, so I let you crash here. She's at work right now."

Áine hummed in response. She continued to finish her breakfast while Saoirse looked at her phone. 

"Oh! Did you hear that Lea and Isa adopted two kids?"

"No? When?"

"Here, I'll show you their photo."

Saoirse scanned through her photos, then she pulled the picture up, showing Áine the four of them together. Áine saw that the two kids they adopted were a boy and a girl. The girl had short, black hair, and the boy had spiky, golden blonde hair. Their eyes were exactly the same eye color, making her assume that the two were siblings. 

"What are the kids' names?"

"Roxas and Xion. Interesting names, I'll say." Saoirse commented.

"Are they siblings?"

"They are now. It's kinda strange how they have the same exact eye color, but hey, you and I got the same eye color."

"Your's is darker." Áine stated.

"True." Saoirse placed her phone on the table, turning it off as she murmured, "After everything those two have been through, it's nice to see them get their lives back together. I wonder what happened to them those eleven years they went missing..." 

Áine also wondered, too. They hadn't heard from them in so long. After they had gone missing, they just suddenly reappeared as if nothing had happened. People worried about them, and when everyone asked what happened, Lea and Isa said they couldn't remember. Some thought they were kidnapped, or if they just hid away from the world since the two were dating. Some even thought they got abducted by aliens, but that theory seemed a little silly. Áine was glad to see the two of them happy, though. After finishing up breakfast, Áine cleaned up her plate, placing it in the sink. Saoirse hadn't finished yet, but was almost close to being done. She noticed Áine grabbing her phone and car keys.

"Are you leaving already?" Saoirse asked.

"Yeah. I gotta go deal with my demons." The girl joked. 

"You be careful over there. If you need me, I'll be there."

Áine smiled. "Thanks, sis."

With that, Áine bid her sister farewell and left the house. Once she got into her car, Áine took a deep breath. She couldn't hide or run away from her problems. She has to confront whatever was at her house. Whether it be a spirit or a demon, she needs to get rid of it, or this never ending cycle of pain and fear will continue. The girl started up her car and drove back to her house. Áine prayed that there was nothing there and that it was just her being stressed out about moving away from her sister. But if it was some kind of spirit, she would have to go online and figure out what kind it was.

They didn't try to attack her in her dreams. If anything, the man just stared at her from a distance and occasionally try to approach her. Áine couldn't recall the man ever trying to bring her harm, and yet when she looked at him, she always felt a sense of dread and despair. Perhaps he can't bring her harm in her dreams, but in the real world. But she couldn't ever recall a time where she was attacked. Sometimes when she was sleeping, she would feel somebody wrapping their arms around her, even kissing her. Was the man trying to be romantic with her? No, there's no way. He was harassing her. And to make things worse, he bit her! It's obvious that this spirit does want to bring her harm, but why hasn't he made a move yet? Is he waiting for her to slowly lose her mind?

Áine tried not to think too much about it, though it was still bothering her. So many questions flooded her mind. Why is this man following her? Is he real or fake? Is he actually a demon or a ghost that once lived in that house? Why does she feel dread every time she sees him in her dreams? Why isn't he trying to hurt her? Did this man actually like her and was attempting to contact her in some way? No, if he liked her, he wouldn't have bitten her. It's clear that the bite wasn't some kind of love bite or a hickey. Áine sighed in frustration.

"I'm going crazy..." She said to herself. "I'm going insane..."

She arrived back home, her car parked in the drive way. Still inside the car, Áine hesitated to exit from her vehicle. She glanced around, noticing that there was not a single person outside. She was all by herself. It didn't help her feel any better knowing that there was nobody around, but what could they do? It's not like they would believe her. The girl shook her head. She can't rely on others to solve her problems, especially if it puts them in danger. Áine has to solve this on her own. She can't stay inside this car forever. She has to go in there and confront whatever was inside there. Or maybe there wasn't' anybody in there at all.

Áine took a deep breath, assuring herself everything was going to be okay. Nobody was in the house. There was nothing inside of the house. It was all just her imagination. Áine got out of the car, walking up to the front door. As she got the key to her house, she noticed her hands were trembling. Why is she so scared? It's just a house. There's nothing to be scared of. Finally, Áine unlocked the door, stepping foot into her home. To her relief, everything was the way it was when she left. Not a single thing was out of place. Áine let out a sigh of relief, shutting the door behind her.

The girl strolled into the kitchen, hanging the keys up. She then texted her sister, telling her that everything was okay and that she made it home safely. Áine turned the TV on to get rid of the silence and ease her tensions. While she went to get herself a snack, Áine wondered if tonight everything was going to be alright. Of course it would. There was nothing to worry about. It was all just in her head. She'll get the cross just in case, maybe a bible too. If any demons appear in her room, she'll just scare them off with the cross and tell them to go away. They can't hurt her if she has a cross.

For the rest of the day, Áine binged watched her favorite series on TV, playing a few games on her cellphone as well. As night began to approach, Áine grew a little anxious. She told herself that it was all in her head, but what if it wasn't? What if the man comes back to hurt her, or something even worse happens? No, no, nothing is going to happen. It's all just stress. The cross will be by her side just in case. Everything is going to be okay. Áine decided that she should be getting ready for bed. Staying up late won't make anything better. It'll just make her even more stressed out. The girl got up from the couch, heading upstairs to her bed room. She got herself ready for bed, brushing her teeth and putting her pajamas on. instead of having the TV on this time, she left it off. However, she left the closet light on, just to make her feel a little safe. Perhaps she should get a lamp, too.

Áine took her headphones and her phone, turning on the music app. The girl lied down on her bed, staring up at the ceiling. She couldn't bring herself to fall asleep. She felt too anxious to even try. The girl would occasionally glance around the room, but nothing seemed out of place. Áine then pulled the covers up, tempted to just hide under them. After awhile as the music blared into the girl's ears, Áine began to feel at ease. Her eyes grew heavy, unable to keep herself from staying up any longer. Soon, she fell fast asleep and entered into her dreams.

In the dream, Áine found herself in a large, crowded city. It was bustling with people. Many were walking aimlessly, some seemed to be in a rush to wherever they needed to be, and others were just standing frozen in place, talking with others. Áine was following a group of her friends, people she recognized in real life, and people who didn't exist in the real world. The group of friends were chatting away about certain topics, swiftly changing from one to another. While the group were talking, one of them noticed something from across the street, letting out a scream. The others noticed too, and they began squealing. Áine couldn't tell what they were freaking out about. Right as she was about to ask, the group suddenly dashed away, passing by the strangers. Confused, Áine followed behind. 

The group were running all over the city, and for some reason, it didn't seem like they were bumping into anybody. Meanwhile, Áine struggled to catch up with them. She wanted to cry out to them and ask what was going on. Who or what did they see that excited them? Áine tried to run faster, but no matter how fast she ran, her friends grew farther and farther away. Finally, the group stopped in their tracks. Once Áine caught up with them, she was about to ask what had caught their attention, only for them to run across the street where there was shockingly no traffic. Áine reached out her hand, calling out to her friends. She felt out of breath from all the running. It didn't even seem like she was running for that long, and yet she felt so tired.

Right as Áine was about to make a dash again, an unfamiliar voice spoke from behind her,

"Hello, princess."

Immediately, the girl froze. Her heart began tightening up in her chest. Something was not right. That voice sounded so crystal clear. It was so out of place with everyone else that was talking. They sounded so muffled, except for the one that had just spoken. Áine was too afraid to turn around and see who the voice belonged to. She was afraid that if she turned around, nobody would be there. Yet she couldn't control herself. Slowly, Áine turned to face whoever was right behind her. To her complete horror, the man who had been stalking her in her dreams was standing right in front of her. She couldn't believe it. He was real...He was real! The man grinned wickedly at her, his golden eye gazing into her soul.

The girl was paralyzed with fear. She couldn't move. She couldn't speak, let alone scream. Áine wanted to scream. She wanted to run away and go back to her group of friends. She wanted to wake up from this nightmare! So many thoughts rushed through the girl's mind, unable to comprehend or figure out the situation. All that she could do was stare in complete horror. With what little power she had, Áine began backing away as the man inched his way closer to her, his gaze kept right on her.

"Where'd you go last night, princess? I was so alone without you."

Áine couldn't respond. Even if she could, she wouldn't be able to say anything. The only thing Áine wanted to do was scream and cry for help. Except she couldn't. Everyone around her was nothing but an illusion. They wouldn't react to her pleas for help, nor could they help her as they wouldn't be strong enough to banish this man out of her dreams. Áine couldn't run away from him, either. If she did, he would probably teleport and stop her from escaping. She didn't want to risk herself getting harmed. The only escape she had was to wake up. The girl struggled to force herself to wake up, telling herself to open her eyes and get up. Was the man preventing her from waking up? Why can't she wake up? 

As the man grew closer and closer, Áine continued to back away from him. Tears began to stream down her face when she realized that escaping him would be futile.

"I thought you ran away, but I'm glad you came back, princess. I was starting to get annoyed of this game of chase."

Suddenly, the man cupped the girl's chin. His wicked grin remained plastered on his face, inching himself closer to the girl's face.

"You're so adorable, you know that?"

_What do you want with me?_ Áine wanted to scream. _Why are you doing this? Who are you?_

Questions flooded the girl's mind, but no words could escape her lips to ask them. It seemed as if the man had put her into some kind of trance, preventing her from doing anything. She couldn't feel herself physically, uncertain if she was having sleep paralysis. Was this actually a part of her dream? Was he actually real, or was he an illusion she had created due to her fears?

"Oh, I'm real, princess. As real as you are."

He can read her mind, too!?

"I know you have so many questions. I'll answer them, I promise. But let me just get one small kiss from you."

As the man leaned closer to her lips, Áine broke out of his trance. She forced herself to break free and move, and when she did, Áine awoke from her dream. She sat up, breathing heavily and clutching tightly onto her bed sheets. The girl was covered in sweat, her heart pounding wildly, and trembling with fear. Áine was blinded by the darkness, excluding the dim light that was coming from the closet. She looked around, finding nothing but herself. Áine sighed with relief. It was all just a dream. A terrible, awful dream. The man wasn't real. He was never real at all. He was just a terrible nightmare. He can't get her anymore. She was completely fine. Áine was about to lie back down onto her bed, only to freeze up when she heard a voice in the darkness speak,

"Now that's rude of you. Leaving me without saying goodbye."

She jumped, looking around in the darkness. When she looked to her right, she spotted a figure leaning against the wall. Áine could see a single, golden glow coming from the figure's eye. It was him...

"I told you I was tired of our game of chase. Now that I'm here and you're right where I want you-"

His sentence was cut off when the girl began to scream. She scrambled to escape her bed, throwing her sheets off of her. This caught the man off guard, watching in complete shock as Áine grabbed the cross from her night stand. She got up from her bed, holding the cross right in front of the demon and yelled at the top of her lungs,

"The power of Christ compels you!"

Standing there with complete confusion and shock, the man glanced up at the girl, then at the cross.

"You're kidding, right?"

"The power of Christ compels you!"

"Princess, that ain't gonna work on me-"

"The power of Christ compels you!"

Annoyed, the man approached her. Áine continued to hold the cross up, her hands trembling. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, staining her dress. As the man, rather the demon stood before her, he smirked with mischief.

"Darling, these things don't actually work on beings such as myself."

To the girl's complete horror, the demon snatched the cross from her grasp, tossing it aside. It made a loud thump in the process. Áine's eyes widened, staring at the useless cross that was now lying on the ground. How did that not work? Demons don't like crosses! Does she need to recite bible verses? Yes! That had to be it! Quickly, Áine rushed back to her night stand, opening the small drawer to search for a small bible she had kept. She snatched it up, flipping rapidly through the pages. The demon approached her again, folding his arms.

"Princess, what did I just say?"

There has to be something! Something to make him go away! Áine didn't know what verses to say. Maybe she could just hold the book up to him? Or recite some random verses? There had to be something, anything! Does she need to hold the cross while she recites the verses? The book was snatched from her hands just as the cross was. Áine watched helplessly as the demon burnt the book in his hands.

"Now, no more distractions, alright?"

With nothing left to defend her, Áine fell onto her knees in defeat. She sobbed uncontrollably, waiting for the demon to just get on with whatever he planned on doing with her. She didn't want to die, nor did she want him to take her soul away to hell. Áine felt weak and pathetic with nobody here to protect her. She felt ashamed and scared. All she could do was just cry.

"Wh-what do you want from me?" She wailed. "Why won't you leave me alone?!"

The demon didn't respond. He just stared down at her with his golden eye. She couldn't see his face, except for the glow. She guessed he wasn't going to give her an answer. Waiting for him to just get over with it, she lowered her head down, staring at the ground. The demon knelt down, taking the girl's wrist as he lifted her back up to her feet. "C'mon, get up." He told her.

To Áine's shock, the demon's hand didn't burn. It felt as if it was a regular human hand, excluding the sharp claws. She looked up at him, her eyes adjusting to the darkness. With little light she had, Áine could make out the man's face. It looked and was shaped similarly to how she saw him in her dreams, excluding the long horns protruding out of his skull. She could also see that there was a look of guilt, though she wasn't completely certain if it was guilt or his face just looked like that.

"I didn't think you'd react like that, princess. But then again, I kinda came off a little creepy. I mean, I am a demon. How am I supposed to come off more, I don't know, nice?"

"Y-you're a demon...?" Áine whimpered.

"An incubus, to be exact."

The girl felt her heart stop.

"Relax, I haven't done anything to you. I've tried to talk to you, but like I said; you kept running away and you always woke up. I never had the chance to show you how I really looked, and I didn't want to frighten you. Either way, I still did."

"O-of course you did..." Áine sniffled as she rubbed her eyes. "Why are you here? What do you want?"

"One question at a time, please." The demon stated.

"Okay...who are you?"

"As in my name?"

Áine nodded. 

"Folks call me many names. I'm usually called Xigbar by others."

"Wait...what's your real name, then?"

"You really wanna know?"

Áine lowered her head, turning her gaze away from the man as she mumbled, "Just asking..."

"Alright. My real name is Luxuria, or Luxu for short. One of the Seven Princes of Darkness."

"W-wait...seven princes...as like the seven deadly sins?"

There was a sly grin that formed on the demon's face. "That's right! Guess which one I am."

Áine thought for a moment. "Um...uh..."

"C'mon. I'm an incubus. What are incubi tied to?" Xigbar asked as he folded his arms.

"Th-they're tied to sex...?"

"Correct. So which sin do I represent?"

"...Lust...?"

"Correct again!" 

Áine scanned the man, looking him up and down. She couldn't believe this man represented one of the seven deadly sins. Well, he wasn't a man, rather a monster. Áine just stared at him, finding the courage to speak.

"You...don't really look like someone that represents lust."

Xigbar laughed, causing the girl to flinch. 

"As if!" He blurted. "You expected me to be some sexy, big breasted woman or something? That's how most folks would see me."

"N-no! No! No!" The girl stammered. "I-I'd thought you'd be...I don't know...um..."

"Muscular?"

Silently, the girl nodded her head.

"Well, I got some muscle, don't I?"

Áine nodded. In all honestly, she couldn't really tell if he did due to the poor lighting.

"Any more questions you got for me, princess?" The demon grinned.

"Stop calling me that." Áine spoke with a soft voice, trying to sound stern. "Please...I'm anything but a princess."

Xigbar held the girl's chin, tilting it up to meet his gaze. 

"Oh, you are a princess. But if you really don't want me to call you that, I could call you something better...like doll."

"No."

It seemed her annoyance ignited something in the demon as he gave her a mischievous smile.

"Oh? Then how about baby girl?"

"Wha-" Áine's cheeks heated up. She pushed herself away from him and covered her face. "N-no! Anything but that!"

"Baby doll?"

"Don't call me anything! Just call me by my name, Áine!"

"Áine..."

The demon's voice was soft and calm. The snarky attitude faded when he spoke her name. It was the first time Áine had heard him speak gently with her without hearing any kind of venom in his voice. It sounded...nice. The girl watched nervously, waiting for the demon to respond. After a few moments, Xigbar's sly grin returned, looking at her once more with that mischievous smile.

"That's a cute name."

The girl found herself blushing again. "It's a name..."

"It's cute, just like you."

"I-I'm not...I'm not cute! I'm average."

"No, you're cute. You're adorable, you're pretty, you're beautiful, I could go on for hours."

Áine covered her face again, whimpering in a pathetic tone.

"Even your reactions are adorable."

"Stop it! You're going to make my face permanently red!" Áine cried.

"I wouldn't mind that. I'd like to see you fluster up like that even more."

"STOP!"

Áine smacked the demon's chest, which didn't gain a reaction from him. The girl turned away from Xigbar, making her way back to her bed. "Fine, I'll stop teasing you." He said. "You seem pretty tired, as well."

"It's 3 in the morning. Of course I'm tired. And I'm pretty sure I woke up the neighbors up with my screaming, too."

"No need to worry about that." He assured her. "I made the whole house sound proof. I was kinda hoping to...you know...have sex with you. However with the way you reacted, I kinda lost interest."

Áine glared at the demon and said while pulling her covers. "Well, you aren't ever going to do dirty things with me. So just go away and leave me alone."

She lied down, facing away from the demon. She took her head phones, putting them back on her head and was about to turn her music on, until she felt herself being pulled away into an embrace.

"Can't leave you alone, princess. Even if you want me gone, I'm not gonna leave you."

"WHAT DID I JUST SAY!?"

"Yeesh, no need to yell." 

"Let go of me! Let....go!"

Áine struggled to free herself from Xigbar's grasp. He wasn't even holding onto her tightly, and yet his grip was firm enough to keep her from escaping. All Xigbar could do was chuckle in amusement.

"For somebody who's pretty shy and quiet, you're also pretty feisty."

"Let me go! LET ME-"

"Guess you're not a snuggle bug." He commented.

"Not when a demon wants to take my soul and drag me to hell!"

Xigbar's smirk faded away, telling her with a firm tone, "Princess, I don't do that kind of stuff. And I ain't dragging you anywhere."

"You better not." Áine threatened.

"Now, go to sleep and get some rest."

"I can't go to sleep when a demon is holding me hostage."

"I just want to hold you close, am I not allowed to do that?" The demon asked.

"No, you're not my boyfriend." Áine responded with annoyance.

"I could be your boyfriend."

The girl rolled her eyes. "I'd rather have a human be my boyfriend than you."

"Ouch. That's cold, even for someone so sweet as you."

"Please...just leave me alone..."

"Alrighty. Go to sleep, princess."

Áine ignored his comment and grabbed her phone. As she was about to turn her music on, she wondered if the demon would continue talking to her while her music would be on. He should know if she's ignoring him or not. Then again, maybe giving him a heads up would let him know that she didn't want to talk with him anymore. Why is she even bothering to tell him, let alone ask for his permission? It just seemed nice to let him know, even if he is a demon.

"Hey, Xig?"

"What's up?"

"I-is it okay if I listen to my music?" Is she really asking permission from a demon?

He shrugged. "I don't care what you do."

Áine let out a soft "okay." in response. She turned her volume up, hoping to drown out the demon's voice if he indeed decided to talk with her. But before she could, she let out one final question.

"Will you leave me alone in my dreams?"

"Yeah, yeah. I will."

"Promise?"

"Áine, I'll leave you alone. Now get some rest, would ya?"

Finally, Áine spoke no more and closed her eyes. She returned back to listening to her music as her back was pressed up against Xigbar's chest. It troubled her that he wasn't burning her like the few times he attempted to hold her like this. Áine wanted to ask him how, but she couldn't ask him anymore questions. Her voice hurt from screaming so much. Hopefully the demon wouldn't try anything on her or try to take advantage of her. Was she really putting her trust in some demon than her own god? She can't trust him. There's no way she would ever put her trust in this thing. 

If he did keep his word, then good. All she wanted from him is to just leave her alone. Other than that, she'll continue to live in this house, if he leaves her alone and lets her dream peacefully without him invading her dreams, as well as not to bring her or others any harm. Minutes passed by, and Áine fell fast asleep in the demon's arms. Noticing she had finally returned back to her slumbering state, Xigbar gave the girl a small kiss on the cheek. The girl reacted by rolling over to her other side, now facing him. As he stared at the girl's sleeping form, a smile crept across his face.

Not a mischievous or wicked one, rather a more gentle one. He brushed his claws through the girl's red hair, which she reacted by burying her head into his chest like a pillow, letting out soft mumbles. If Xigbar was human and had a heart, it would have skipped a few beats just then. He held the girl closer, murmuring one, final sentence;

"You're mine."


	3. New Roommate

The next morning arrived, the sun rays beaming through the window blinds. Áine slowly opened her eyes, which were slightly burning as she tried to adjust her sight. She rubbed them, yawning in the process. She turned over to get her phone, only to realizing somebody was holding her. She looked down to see that she was wrapped up in somebody's grasp. Startled, she looked over to find the demon from the night before was still laying in her bed, looking at her with a mischievous grin.

  
"Morning, princess."

Áine let out a yelp, escaping from his grasp and struggling to get out of bed. Xigbar watched in amusement as Áine ran to the door to escape, only for her to turn around and check to see if he was still in her bed. He smirked at her, sitting himself up as he said,

  
"Guess this means you're awake, huh?"

"W-what are you still doing in my bed?" Áine demanded.

"Oh, don't tell me you forgot last night."

  
The girl felt her heart stop. "N-no?" She hesitated to ask the next question, fearing what the answer would be.

Xigbar then climbed out of the girl's bed, approaching her. With light, Áine could get a better view of the demon's true form. He looked mostly human from the torso up, except down his legs. Some parts of his chest were covered in what appeared to be fur, almost as if it was tightly wrapped around him. His chest and stomach revealed some human skin, showing off the muscles that he had. The demon wore no clothes, but thankfully he had no privates showing. His legs were also covered in dark fur. His tail was thin, the end shaped like a heart. His arms were slightly hairy as well, having sharp claws at the tip of his fingers. Áine looked up at his face, noticing he looked similar to his human form appeared in. Except for his horns and sharp, pointed ears.

"Now, don't be so scared, princess. I'm not gonna hurt you. That would be the last thing I want to do."

Áine glared at him. "I doubt it. You're waiting for me to let my guard down so you can gain my trust and then betray me and take my soul to hell so you can torment me. You're just waiting for me to give into my sins, and you'll do anything to make me give in. You and your kind lie about everything so you can claim our souls."

Xigbar rubbed the back of his neck. "I mean, you're not wrong, but not all of us are liars. We speak the truth and give others warnings. Some of us even warn people to not dive into dark stuff."

"Liar."

"Ooh, so harsh. And it's only morning."

The girl rolled her eyes. She then left the room, making her way down stairs. Xigbar followed behind. She then went to the kitchen, preparing herself some breakfast. Xigbar watched from a distance, studying the girl. Áine could feel his gaze on her as she made herself breakfast, feeling incredibly uneasy as he continued to watch. She wanted to yell at him to go away, but that would seem pointless. It's almost like messing with her and making her uncomfortable was a game to him. Áine grabbed her bowl of cereal and made her way to the table, ignoring Xigbar as she walked passed him. Once she sat down, he stood before her, watching her with a sly grin. Annoyed, Áine looked up at the demon and asked,

"What do you want?"

"Oh, nothing. Just getting a good look at you."

Áine scoffed. She ate her cereal, feeling uneasy as she ate. It felt like hours as she ate, continuing to feel the demon's gaze on her. It felt like he was mocking her, making her think that he was going to harm her, when in reality he wasn't. She couldn't take it, feeling watched constantly, especially knowing the fact that he's standing right next to her. Áine could feel her heart beat racing, as well as her anxiety rising. She wanted him to stop looking at her. She wanted him to go away. She wanted to throw the cereal in his face, but went against the idea. She didn't want to anger him, fearing what kind of powers he had. She wasn't going to risk it. What felt like an eternity, Áine continued eating. She could feel herself sweating as the demon stared at her. She didn't want to look at him and see that cruel smile on his face. What did he want from her? Why won't he leave her alone? What did she do to make him want to torment her? Why won't he just go away and leave her in peace?! Áine dropped her spoon, shooting up from her seat as she snapped,

"Will you just go away and leave me alone!?"

"I'm just standing here. What's the problem with that?" Xigbar questioned, all the while still grinning.

"You're...you're making me feel uneasy and scared! You're scaring me! Okay?! Go away and leave me alone!"

Xigbar's smile finally faded away after her out burst. He almost seemed hurt at her statement. 

"I...I scare you?"

"Yes!" Áine cried. "You scare me! Ever since I've moved here, you've been scaring me! You keep stalking me in my dreams and I keep thinking that you're going to hurt me or do something worse! I feel like you're also going to take advantage of me or hurt me! I don't know what I did to be your target, so please, go away and leave me be!"

There was silence in the room. Xigbar just stared at her with a hurt look on his face. Then, his expression changed from being hurt to furious. Áine regret her sudden outburst once she saw his glare.

"You really wanna know why I've been following you for the past few days?" The demon asked. "Do you?"

"I...I don't think I want to..." Áine sat back down, going back to her cereal while Xigbar continued.

"I was drawn to you because of the light inside your heart. That's why I've been following you. You happy?"

"My light? What are you talking about?"

The demon let out a frustrated sigh. "Man, am I gonna have to dump all the info on you?"

Áine didn't respond. Xigbar folded his arms. It seemed like he was going to have to tell her one way or another. Not giving her an explanation or saying anything will affect her in the future, even endanger her. So it's best if she knew now.

"Okay, princess. Here's the thing; demons are attracted to those who are pure of light. May they be super pure of light with no darkness, or have a tiny bit of it inside them. Demons go to those who are innocent and pure, who are vulnerable, and so on. But mainly, they go after the pure and good hearted ones."

"So they can corrupt them and turn them evil?"

"Yes and no. Demons want those with light and purity for many reasons. One; to corrupt their souls and drag them to hell to torment them. Two; turn them into demons, Three; to destroy their soul and leave them as hollow husks so they can possess their bodies, and Four; to turn them into a much more perverted and twisted version of their former selves."

"And I'm guessing you're here to do one of those things to me?" Áine inquired, not making eye contact with the demon.

"Hell no. I came here to prevent that from happening to you." Xigbar then pointed at the girl, "See the little bite mark right there?"

Immediately, Áine froze. She rubbed her hand down the mark she had gotten. As she rubbed it, she replied with a whimper. "Y-yes...?"

"I gave that to you so that way no demon could claim you. That mark shows that I own you, and that also means no demon can bring any harm upon you regardless. It's kinda what we do when we like a human. So that means that I can spoil you like the pet you are."

A mark? Pet? Claiming her as his? Panicking, Áine stood up, repeating, "no" over and over. This can't be real. This can't be true! The demon is lying to her! There's no way that he marked her or claimed her as his! If he did, then does that mean he also owns her soul? Áine never did anything to be claimed by a demon! Sure, she's not the greatest person in the world, but that doesn't mean that she's done anything to be claimed by a demon! She hasn't tried to summon them or make any pacts! Why was she marked?!

"Th-this can't be real..." Áine murmured. "This can't be real..."

"Oh, it's all real, princess."

"No! You're lying! You're lying to me! You can't mark my body! My body doesn't belong to you! I don't belong to you!"

Xigbar held his hands up to calm the girl down. "Yeesh, calm down. You make it sound like that I claimed your soul."

"H-how do I know if you haven't claimed it already?"

"I think it would be a little obvious. You seem to still have faith in your god."

Áine turned her head away. "Th-that's true."

"Until you, oh, I dunno...give up that faith, then that means I can fully claim you as mine. Body and soul."

The girl smiled proudly, saying to the demon, "Well, guess you're gonna have to wait for a long time, because I'm never going to give up my faith, no matter what you say or do. I will never fall for your tricks, nor will I ever give into your sinful ways."

A chuckle escaped Xigbar's lips. "Really now? Oh, this is going to be a fun game for me." He leaned close to the girl, causing her to back away from him. "Well, guess what, princess? I may not take away your soul, or send you away to the depths of hell, but I will get you to fall to your knees and beg for me to take you."

"Whatever." Áine rolled her eyes.

"It'll happen."

"If you were a human, maybe I would end up falling for you, but you're not human, so no. I won't ever happen."

"Oh, you're so adorable when you're in denial."

Áine ignored his comment as she picked up her bowl. She went into the kitchen, placing her bowl in the dish washer. When she turned around, she nearly ran into the demon. She let out a yelp, almost falling onto her bottom. Quickly, she regained her balance and shouted,

"Look here, mister, if you don't want me to get rid of you, there are going to be some rules! Got that?"

"I hear ya."

"Rule number one; no scaring me or anyone else in this house! Rule number two; No touching me in a sexual manner! Rule number three; don't bother me whenever I am doing work, okay? Rule number four; Don't take advantage me in my sleep and leave me alone in my dreams. Rule number five; don't bring any harm upon anybody in the house. Not me, not my friends, family, or strangers. You got that?"

"I got that." 

"I mean it!"

"And I'll keep my word. Look, I'm not the greatest guy, I'll admit that, but I've never broken any promises. And I wouldn't want to force you to do anything sexual unless you want me to. Makes me feel bad about it."

Áine glared at him. "Well you should feel bad about it."

She then walked passed him, heading back up to her bedroom to get her phone and laptop. Xigbar followed her, standing in the door way as he watched her beginning to change Áine noticed him in the corner of her eye and swiftly turned around to him, yelling,

"What did I just say to you?!"

"You never said I couldn't watch you." Xigbar teased.

"Okay then, new rule; no spying on me or watching me take showers or change my clothes. Now go away!"

Áine pushed Xigbar to get him leave, however he didn't budge from his spot. Annoyed, she stomped out of his view into the bathroom. She must've known that he could easily walk in on her. Instead, Xigbar decided to remain where he was. He didn't want to upset her any further. Although he was tempted to get a glimpse of her nude form. He scanned the room, patiently waiting for her to finish up changing. Finally, Áine returned into a new set of clothes. She took out her laptop from one of her bags, taking her cellphone and the laptop's charger with her as she made her way back down stairs. She placed her laptop on the kitchen table, then plugged the charger into the outlet. Meanwhile, Xigbar watched her as she began speaking to herself.

"Okay, let's see..." Áine pulled out her cellphone, checking her notifications. She got a text from Saoirse, who was asking if she was alright. Áine checked in with her sister, assuring her everything was okay. Next, she went to her private notes and looked at the list she made. "Eat breakfast...check. Check notifications or texts...check...go online and look at messages...not done yet."

Áine opened up her laptop, logging onto her account. Xigbar watched silently, his armed folded while his tail moved in vigorously in annoyance. It upset him that Áine paid him no attention, forgetting that he was even there. While she responded to her emails, Xigbar began walking over to the other side of the table, sitting down in front of her in a seductive pose. Áine glanced up, then looked back at her laptop screen.

"Get off the table." She demanded.

"Why?"

"Get off the table." Áine repeated, sounding much more stern.

"You're so adorable when you try to act serious."

"I'm not gonna have to buy a spray bottle to squirt you, am I?"

"If you want me off the table, you're gonna have to make me." Xigbar teased.

Áine once again rolled her eyes. She couldn't spray him with water, as she did not own a spray bottle. Instead, she just decided to ignore him. It seemed like he was just trying to toy with her to get a reaction. If she ignored him, maybe he'll get bored with her and go away. However, Xigbar was determined to win and gain the girl's attention. He crawled seductively, motioning his hand to close the laptop. Before he could even reach it, Áine quickly got up from her seat, pulling out her laptop charger in the process. She then made her way to the living room, sitting on the couch. Defeated, Xigbar let out a sigh and hopped off the table. This wasn't going to be as easy as he hoped. Never had he encountered a human so determined and stubborn to ignore him. Usually they would have given in by now. Perhaps it's because of that light inside of her soul that's keeping her from falling into his grasps. Sooner or later, she would give into him.

With nothing better to do, Xigbar sat next to the girl. She scooted away from him, not breaking her gaze away from her laptop screen. What is with this girl? Why won't she look at him? Why hasn't she given into him? Isn't he supposed to be irresistible? Not to this girl apparently. That must be why she's so interesting. She doesn't give into him so easily like many others had. She's so determined to remain pure and keep her faith in a god who never shows any compassion to his followers. This poor girl doesn't deserve to worship a cruel and heartless god, nor does she deserve to be in the pits of hell and burn for all of eternity. She deserves a better fate than that. So how was he going to win her over?

"So, what are you doing?" Xigbar asked, trying to sound interested in whatever the girl was doing.

"I'm working." 

"On what?"

"It's nothing for you to be concerned about, no leave me alone, please."

Xigbar frowned. "How long are you going to be paying attention to that thing?"

"Until you go away." Áine replied coldly.

Damn. This girl used to be so sweet and caring. When is he ever going to see that cute and shy side of her again? Knowing he wasn't going to get anywhere with the girl, Xigbar got up from the couch and said,

"Welp, I'm bored. I'm going to be heading back to my boss, so you be good now, princess."

Xigbar then disappeared into a dark corridor, leaving no trace that he was ever there. Relieved, Áine let out a cheer. Now she can go back to living a normal life! She'll probably call an exorcist to get the demon out and cleanse her house. Then again, that'll just anger Xigbar. She doesn't want to make him angry. For a demon, he's quite...different. He hasn't physically attacked her, nor try to bring her any kind of harm upon her. Sure, he had been stalking her in her dreams, but he didn't try to actually harm her. All he's done was flirt with her...or what appears to be flirting. Áine rolled her eyes. What is she thinking? Of course demons can't flirt! He's just putting up a facade and trying to make it seem like he's flirting when in reality, he's just trying to tempt her to give into sin. And she couldn't believe that she was trying to reason the terrible things he had done. Stalking her in her dreams and making her feel scared of her own home. Yeah he didn't seem pretty friendly.

But then again, when she told him that he scared her...he looked offended. Maybe he didn't intend on actually hurting her? What is she saying? Of course he intended on doing that! He's just pretending until he can gain her full trust. Once he does, he'll just betray her and drag her soul into hell. She wasn't going to give into him. And whatever he said to her earlier, about being pure, Áine doubted it. Sure, she was a decent person, but she had her flaws. Was her being shy and quiet a part of her being "pure?" Áine shrugged it off. It's probably just lies. That's what demons do. They lie.

The day went by as normal. Xigbar never reappeared again, nor did anything supernatural happen. Áine finished up unpacking her other stuff that she never got the chance to do since she moved in with the demon harassing her. After setting up her studio in one of the rooms, she felt incredibly hungry. She checked the time on her phone, noticing it was getting close to lunch time. Maybe she can go out and get some groceries. She better stack up since she rarely goes outside. Before she could get her stuff, Áine remembered about her bite mark. People were going to see it if she didn't cover it up. But what could she cover it up with? She had no scarves, and the ones she did have were really heavy for the winter. Áine let out a sigh. Maybe she can just order them online. That would be better than going out and having the entire world see the bite mark and think she was into weird stuff. Áine got back onto her laptop, ordering her things that she would be needing. She planned on ordering dinner as well, but told herself to wait until it was later.

For the rest of the day, Áine binged watched series she never got the chance to finish, or that she had gained interest in. As it was getting close to dinner time, Áine decided to order some pizza. Right as she was about to get up, a familiar voice called out,

"Hello, princess."

Áine tensed up, clutching her fists tightly. Not him. Why did he have to appear now of all times? Why can't he wait until she goes to bed? Xigbar approached the girl, sitting next to her. She immediately retreated, scooting far away from him. 

"So, how were you while I was away?" 

"Fine until you showed up." The girl responded, not batting an eye at him.

"Aww. Well, I missed you all day. I thought about coming back here and-"

"Keep whatever perverted thoughts you have keep them to yourself, please. I don't want to know."

Xigbar immediately shut himself up, not saying another word. He looked over at the TV, watching the show that Áine was currently on.

"What'chu watching?"

"A show about magical girls." Áine responded.

"Magical girls?"

"Yeah."

Xigbar continued to watch. Then, he turned his attention back to the girl.

"Why do you watch stuff like this? Aren't you a little old to be watching these kid shows?"

"I mainly watch it because of the animation and character design. Sometimes the story and lore can be interesting, too. Or there's a certain character that I might really like."

"Doesn't magic go against your religion?"

Áine shrugged. "It's just a TV show. I'm not...you know, super duper crazy religious." Immediately, Áine realized who she was talking to and snapped, "Wait a minute, why am I telling you this? You're not a human!"

"Oh, come on. I have feelings, too. Besides, I felt like we just had a connection."

"No, that was just me letting my guard down." 

Áine got herself up from the couch, making her way to the kitchen again. She went back over to her laptop, turning it on. Xigbar followed, letting out a frustrated growl,

"You seriously still using that thing? Were you on it all day?"

"No, I was setting up my studio when you were gone."

"Studio?" The demon raised an eyebrow. "Like an art studio? Music studio?"

"Music studio." Áine said.

While she was ordering her pizza, Xigbar once again got onto the table, sitting across from her. Though he wasn't trying to seduce her, he still wanted her attention.

"So, you write music or something like that?"

"I do covers."

"Covers of what?"

"Other songs." The girl responded. 

"You gotta tell me what kinda music you like, princess." Xigbar coaxed. "C'mon, you like pop, metal, classical-wait, no, you don't look like the kind of girl who would listen to that kind of stuff."

Áine continued to ignore him. Xigbar furrowed his eyebrows. He was tired of her constantly ignoring him and keeping her distance from him. What does he have to gain her respect and attention? He got up from the table, walking over to the girl as he said,

"I'm getting really sick and tired of you ignoring me, princess."

"Well I'm getting sick and tired of you harassing me and trying to tempt me into your twisted games. I'm not going to fall for them or for you."

A laugh came out of the demon. "You're still on that? When will you give it up?"

"Never."

The demon chuckled. "Oh, you'll fall for me. I know you will, and I can't wait until you do."

As he began walking away, Áine blurted, "Even if you were a human, I would never want to be with someone like you."

"Why's that?"

"For starters; you're mean and very, very pushy. You won't leave me alone or give me personal space. You keep teasing me and it frustrates me because I can't tell if you're joking or being genuine. Besides, you wouldn't ever understand the kind of person I am, nor respect me and my wishes. You probably would only want to date me so you can have sex with me and abandon me to find someone else. Sex is always on your mind, anyway."

For someone who barely knew him, her words cut through the demon's empty heart. It hurt him deeply. Though she wasn't wrong about him thinking about sex, she wasn't completely right, either. 

"Sex isn't always on my mind, princess."

"Oh, then what are you thinking about?"

No response. Áine finished up her order, clicking the payment button. She got up from her seat, saying to herself, "Now, all I have to do is wait." She closed her laptop, not wanting Xigbar to go through her stuff. He probably could without trying to log in, but she didn't want to see him try it. Áine walked back to the couch, continuing her TV show. Xigbar sat back down with the girl, watching whatever series was on the screen.

"Now, when the pizza guy comes, I don't want you to scare him." 

"Relax, princess. Nobody else can see me except for you." Xigbar assured her, waving his arm in the air.

Before she could make a comeback, Áine's cellphone began to rang. Quickly, she grabbed it and checked to see who it was. It was Saoirse. Áine got up from the couch once again. She looked at Xigbar and said,

"It's my sister. I don't want you to do anything while I'm talking to her."

He shrugged, letting her know that he wasn't going to try anything. Áine answered the phone, her harsh and cold tone switching back to her kind and gentle voice.

"Hi, sis!"

_"Heyyo! How's it going over there? No more demons bothering you, right?"_

Xigbar stared at the girl, who glanced over at him and responded back, "Oh, no. No more demons. It was just me being stressed about moving away in a new place."

_"Then what about the bite mark?"_

Áine paused, uncertain how to respond. She rubbed her neck, coming up with a lie. "W-well...there was a demon...but he's gone now. I was able to get him outta here. So now the place is all to myself! Nobody can hurt me anymore!"

Xigbar chuckled. It was obvious she was lying to her sister to assure her everything was okay, but man was she bad at lying. If her sister actually believed her with that fake tone, then she's a fool.

"Everything's okay now, sis. Really." Áine wasn't certain if she was even being honest with herself.

_"Okay...but if anything else happens over there, you tell me and get the hell outta there. Got it?"_

"Yeah. Got it."

_"Love you, Áine."_

"Love you too, sis!"

With that, Áine hung up. She placed her cellphone back on the table, right next to her laptop. Xigbar grinned, letting out a laugh.

"You're a completely different person when you're talking to other people that aren't me."

"Saoirse's my sister." Áine stated. "And she's my family. Besides, you don't understand that concept."

"Family? Oh, I got a family. Not blood related, though. In fact, I get along with them just fine."

The girl glared at him. "I sense sarcasm in your voice."

"What? We do get along! Well, most of the time."

Áine sat down on the couch, keeping her distance from the demon. She continued playing her show, completely ignoring the demon that was sitting next to her. The more she ignored him, the more likely he'll leave her alone. However, it seemed like that wasn't going to be the case, though. The demon scooted closer to the girl. When Áine realized she could no longer scoot away, she thought about going over to the other couch. Before she could make an escape, Xigbar wrapped his arm around the girl, pulling her closer to his chest.

"Now, isn't this romantic?" He joked. "The two of us sitting together like boyfriend and girlfriend."

Immediately, Áine pulled out of his grasp and yelled in anger, "We are NOT boyfriend and girlfriend! In fact, we're not even husband and wife!"

"You're upgrading me to husband?" His eye beamed with delight.

Is this guy serious? He was really having fun with messing with her, wasn't he? Áine let out a groan, sinking herself into the couch. Xigbar decided that he had enough of teasing the girl. He didn't want to stress her out too much. He gave her some space and moved himself over to the other side.

"Alright, alright. I'll stop teasing you."

Áine didn't respond. She just kept her eyes glued onto the TV screen. After watching a few episodes, Áine decided it was time to watch something else. Maybe a movie? Another TV show? Áine scrolled through the list of movies to watch, uncertain what to pick. Xigbar wanted to interject and say something, but he didn't. He decided to just let the girl chose whatever she wanted. She wouldn't heed his words anyway, even if he tried to be genuine. The silence was suddenly broken when the doorbell rang. Áine's eyes widened with joy, blurting out in excitement, "Pizza time!" She jumped up, rushing over to the front door. Xigbar turned around, watching in complete shock and confusion as Áine answered the door. A young man was holding her boxes of pizza. Áine smiled at him, thanking him as she took the boxes from him. Once he left, Áine closed the door, locking it in the process. She went into the kitchen, placing the boxes down on the counter top. 

Curious to see what was going on, Xigbar went over to the kitchen to find Áine opening a box of pizza. He had never seen the girl look so happy ever since she came here. She took a paper plate, getting three slices of pizza. Xigbar's stared at the girl in complete shock. Was she that hungry? Right as Áine was about to walk away, she noticed the surprised look on the demon's face.

"What?"

"Isn't that too much pizza for a small girl such as yourself?"

Áine glared at him. "Let me spoil myself in peace, thank you."

She walked right past the demon, returning back to her seat. Áine decided to watch a movie as she was no longer in the mood of binge watching episodes. Xigbar joined her, keeping his distance this time. Áine was enjoying herself, completely ignoring the fact that there was a demon sitting right next to her. She even seemed like she had completely forgotten he was there. Xigbar would occasionally glance over at the TV screen to see what made the girl laugh or giggle, however his gaze wasn't on the movie.

It was on her.

He paid the movie no attention, only having his gaze on the girl. He studied every movement she made, every emotion she showed. Never had he felt so drawn to an individual like her before. Sure in the past, he found humans fascinating, even fun to toy with, but with her...it just seemed different. Was it that damn light inside of her? Her devotion and faith in a god who rarely gave a damn about his own followers? Why did he like this girl so much? What the hell is this emotion he's feeling? He's never felt it before. Was it lust, or was it actually love? Why is she making him feel like this? What kind of magic does this girl have on him? 

The movie had finally finished. Áine noticed that it was getting late. Áine lifted herself up from the couch, stretching her back. She took her plate, throwing it into the trash can. Xigbar followed the girl upstairs back to her bedroom. Right when Áine was about to change into her pajamas, she glanced over and jumped. Xigbar smirked at her reaction, glad that she finally noticed him.

"Could you please go away? I have to change."

"Aww, I can't watch?"

"Remember the rules I gave you?" Áine reminded him. "One of them was to not spy on me, especially when I'm showering or changing."

"How can I not watch, though? I'm curious to see what you look like without any clothes on."

Unbelievable. Áine took her pajamas, walking into the bathroom and out of the demon's sight. He chuckled in delight. Man, she's adorable. A few minutes passed by, and Áine returned in a night gown. She stopped in her tracks as she found Xigbar lying in her bed, on the complete opposite side of where she slept. He is not going to sleep in her bed again. This is her bed, and she is not sharing it with this demon.

"Get out of my bed." The girl demanded.

"Hmm?"

"Get out of my bed."

"Why?"

"Because I don't want you to get any funny ideas when I sleep."

"I promised you I wouldn't bother you in your dreams." Xigbar assured her.

"And to not take advantage of me! Now get out of my bed!"

It was clear that he did not plan on leaving her bed. Frustrated, Áine yelled, "You know what, fine! You can keep the bed! I'll just go sleep on the couch!"

As Áine was about to walk out of her bed room, she felt herself being scooped off of the floor. She let out a squeak as Xigbar carried her over his shoulders.

"You're not going anywhere, princess." He grinned. "You're gonna be my little snuggle bug like you were yesterday."

"Help! I'm being held hostage by a demon!" Áine cried. "Help me!"

"I told you I made the house sound proof. Nobody can hear you, princess."

"Help! Help!"

Áine was dropped onto her bed, letting out another squeak. Before she could try and escape, Xigbar got into bed with her, wrapping his arms around her, preventing her from trying to flee. Áine kicked and squirmed in his grasp, much to his dismay. 

"C'mon, princess. It's time to go to bed."

"I-I can't go to sleep like this!" She cried.

"What do you mean?"

"I...I have to listen to music to drown out the silence..."

The demon stared at her blankly, making Áine feel even more upset. To her shock, Xigbar got himself up from the bed, heading towards her dresser. He grabbed her headphones, handing them over to Áine. Hesitantly, she took them, uncertain if he was going to just yank them away or not. He didn't, much to her relief. Áine then realized that she didn't bring up her phone, leaving it downstairs with her laptop.

"W-wait, my phone's downstairs."

"Want me to get it for you?" The demon asked.

"No, I can get it."

"You look comfortable in your bed, though. Let me get it for you, princess."

"N-no, really. I can-"

With a flick of a finger, her cellphone suddenly appeared in the demon's hand. Áine stared in complete shock. She was completely speechless. Though she should've known that he would pull of some magic tricks, and yet she was still surprised. Xigbar handed the girl her phone, saying, "There you go." Áine took it, worried that the one he was giving her might be a fake, or somebody else's. When she turned it on, she saw that it was indeed her cellphone. Áine wanted to thank him, however the words wouldn't escape her lips. It felt strange to even say thank you, especially to him. She didn't understand why he was being so nice all of the sudden. Why couldn't he be like this all the time?

"You ready for bed now?"

Áine nodded her head silently.

"Alrighty then." Xigbar climbed back into bed, rejoining the girl as he wrapped one arm over her. Áine went to open her music app, only to be interrupted when Xigbar said, "Hey, don't have that thing up too loud, okay?"

"Uh...okay?"

"Why do you look confused?"

The girl averted her gaze from the demon. "It's just...you've been a jerk all day, and now all the sudden you're being nice to me. I'm pretty sure you're just pretending to get on my good side but...I don't know." Áine lowered her voice, hoping that the demon wouldn't hear her mumbling. "I just wished you more nice to me all the time..."

"Princess, I know I can be an asshole, and I don't mean to actually hurt you or anything. Look, I know I was being annoying and bothering you all day, and I'm sorry for that. I just wished that maybe you would get to know me better and not assume I'm totally evil."

"But you're a demon." Áine blurted out.

"Yeah, I may be a demon, but that doesn't mean I'm evil. Do you think every angel is good? Look at Lucifer. That guy was a prideful, arrogant asshole and he got casted out. Then he became a demon. There were other angels that rebelled and became demons, but they had different reasons to why they were casted out, and I'm pretty sure you know why."

Áine didn't respond. With nothing else to say, Xigbar let out a sigh. "Alright, now go to sleep."

"What about you?"

"I don't need to sleep. Besides, you need me awake to protect you from any nasty monsters. But that won't happen."

The girl stared at him, feeling a little uneasy knowing that there could be monsters around. And the fact that she can't run away or escape if they actually came made her feel even more uneasy. 

"Don't worry, princess. I promise I'll keep ya safe. Trust me on that."

Trust would have to be earned, especially from him. With nothing else to say, Áine closed her eyes, resting her head against the demon's chest. He felt incredibly warm. Not scorching hot, but warm enough to keep her from freezing. Áine wondered how Xigbar was able to change his body heat as he had burned her a few times in the past, although he never left any burn marks. Áine slowly began to drift away to sleep, snuggling up against the demon. She couldn't believe that she was actually cuddling up with a demon. She didn't understand why, but she was too tired to argue with herself about it. It just felt nice cuddling with somebody, even if it was a demon. After a few minutes passed by, Xigbar noticed that the girl was no longer moving around in her sleep. He glanced down at her, finding her fast asleep.

She looked like a completely different person as she slept. She didn't appear to be angry or stressed. She looked at peace. Humans always looked so peaceful and calm whenever they were sleeping. It was one thing that Xigbar envied about them, being able to sleep. Meanwhile he had to remain awake, unable to experience the feeling of slumber. It probably wasn't fun anyways. Yet he was still curious to know what it felt like. The room was completely silent, except for the girl's soft breathing and the blaring music coming from her headphones. Xigbar could hear exactly what kind of music she was listening to. He thought he told her to not have that thing all the way up. She'll blare her eardrums out.

There was no point in waking her up now. This moment felt so perfect. Having her snuggling up against him with his arms wrapped around her, keeping her both warm and safe. Xigbar rarely snuggled with the humans he had corrupted. There had been a few times where he stayed and lied with them, but he never snuggled with them like he was with Áine. There were too many humans to remember, anyway. While he continued to stare at her, he began to feel guilty for the way he had behaved toward her. Sure, he was a complete dick to her, but he couldn't help it. He didn't mean to make her upset, nor to scare her. If anything, he was just trying to seduce her, which didn't work for obvious reasons. How was he ever going to win her heart? How was he ever going to gain her trust? 

The feelings began to return to the demon's empty heart, making him growl in frustration. Damn it, what the hell are these feelings, anyway? He never felt like this for anybody before. Why is he feeling this all the sudden? Xigbar couldn't remember ever feeling like this before for anybody. Yeah, there may had been some humans he found interesting and liked, but he never felt like this for them. There was no way that this feeling he had was love. It can't be. He's an incubus, a demon of lust. He doesn't feel love. He can't, even if he wanted to. But what if he was really falling for this girl? He found her interesting. He even liked her far more than any human he had encountered before. The light in her soul did attract him to her, and yet he didn't want to smother out that light. If anything, he wanted to keep it safe...keep her safe.

Ugh, he couldn't believe himself. If anybody were to hear him now, they would laugh at him. He couldn't believe he was growing soft on this girl. Maybe that was a good thing. No, this is bad...this is really bad. Nobody can know about these feelings. Not his master, not any other demon known to existence. That would risk the girl's safety. He had to make sure that nobody knew about her. He wasn't going to risk her life or give her up to anybody else, but he couldn't just abandon his purpose. Xigbar let out a frustrated sigh, mumbling to himself,

"What the hell did I get myself into?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not updating this story, I was kinda busy working on other projects. My brain is terrible when it comes to projects and ideas and I just abandon them or put them on hold. 
> 
> This chapter was kinda difficult to write, especially with Xigbar's behavior and personality. It's an AU, but I wanted to try and keep him the same from the games. I mean he's a jerk in the story and in the games, but I don't want to make him come off as a creep or anything like that. Also I changed the ending of the chapter because I didn't really like the original version.


	4. Seven Princes of Sin

As Áine awoke, she opened her eyes to find that she was no longer being held by the demon. She lifted herself up, looking around, only to find that the room was completely empty. There was no sign of Xigbar anywhere. A jolt of energy surged through the girl and she let out a cheer of joy. He must have finally gotten bored with her and left her for good. Then again, he's probably left for the day doing whatever it is his kind does. That might mean that he will come back. Perhaps while he's away, Áine can call someone to cleanse the house. Áine thought about it for a moment, but suddenly had a change of heart. He may be a demon, but he didn't seem to be incredibly violent towards her. If anything, he was just annoying and messing with her. That doesn't mean it won't escalate to something dangerous. She probably should make a call or email someone just in case.

Áine rolled out of bed, getting herself ready for the day. When was the last time she had a bath? Perhaps she should take one. After all, taking showers felt nice. Hopefully Xigbar doesn't appear while she's in the shower and peep on her. She made it clear that if he spied on her or did anything dirty, she would get rid of him. Although he promised he would follow her rules, there was that small chance he would break them. He better not actually break those rules and spy on her or he was outta her house. He is a demon, after all. They don't play by the rules, nor did they obey humans. Áine took her dress off, grabbing a towel from the closet. She wasn't going to walk out and let Xigbar get a peek at her. She didn't want to hear whatever perverted or rude comments he had on her body.

Áine turned the water on, waiting for it to warm up to a nice temperature. Once it was ready, Áine stepped in, closing the glass door behind her. She closed her eyes, letting herself relax as the warm droplets hit against her skin. How long has it been since she's taken a shower in peace? It really hasn't been that long, has it? It felt like years. The times she remembered taking a shower, she was constantly on edge, never daring to close her eyes. Especially when she put shampoo in her hair, having one eye open instead. She should take all the time she needed. This might be her only chance to relax in the shower. Áine grabbed a bottle of shampoo, humming to herself as she washed her hair. She was still on guard though, making sure that Xigbar didn't appear out of no where and scare her. The worse case is that he could teleport right behind her and see her exposed body. It seemed like that would be something he would do.

The water was starting to get colder as Áine took a long time getting herself clean. She always took long showers, sometimes forgetting to wash herself up. The girl leaned against the wall, her eyes closed as the water continued to hit against her skin. She had turned the knob to a much warmer setting to prevent the water from getting any colder. Áine knew she was using up the hot water, but she didn't care. It was her house, so she didn't have to follow anyone's rules but hers. Saoirse didn't have to yell at her for taking so long in the shower and use up all the hot water. Nor would she have to fear somebody walking in on her while she was singing to herself...other than Xigbar, that is. With no more hot water to relax her, Áine decided it was finally time to get out. She was probably going to regret taking long showers due to her now having to pay the bills. Áine turned the shower off, squeezing out the water in her hair.

She struggled due to her hair not being as long as her sister's. The girl then took her towel, which was hanging over the shower doors. She dried up most of her body, struggling in the process due to the lack of space inside the shower. She really wanted to get out, but didn't want to walk out to find Xig standing there, waiting to see her naked body. Honestly, she didn't want to see him in general. He made her feel uncomfortable. After she dried herself up, Áine got out of the shower, wrapping the towel over her head. She went into the closet to grab something new to wear. There were so many dresses, she completely forgot which ones could still fit her. Áine took one of them that were hanging. She would get her panties later. She didn't need to wear a bra, as her chest wasn't big, and she was also home alone. As Áine exited her closet, she pulled her towel off her head, changing into her new outfit. She then took the towel from the ground, hanging it over the shower door. Feeling refreshed, Áine decided that it was time to get some breakfast. Right as she made her way back into her bedroom, she stopped in her tracks to find Xigbar lying in her bed. He lifted his head up, his sly grin reappearing once more when he saw the girl.

  
"Hey, princess. Where've you been?"

  
"What are you doing?" Áine folded her arms.

  
"Just laying here, hoping you would come back and cuddle." He responded with a seductive tone.

  
"I just got out of the shower. I'm not going to be taking a nap anytime soon."

  
Áine went over to her dresser, searching for a different pair of underwear to put on. She had her back facing the demon, preventing him from seeing what she was getting. Xigbar sat up from the bed, curious to see what exactly the girl was looking for. The bed creaked slightly as he began to get up. Áine glanced over, noticing that the demon was making his way towards her. She yelled,

  
"Stop looking!"

  
"Ooh, what are you getting? New panties?"

  
"No!" Áine lied.

  
It was clearly obvious she was lying to him, as well as getting flustered. Her cheeks were turning bright red, much to the demon's pleasure. 

  
"What pair you gonna pick?" Xigbar inquired.

  
"It's none of your business! Now go away!" Áine waved her hand at the demon, trying to get him away from her dresser.

  
"Aw, but I wanna know what kind of panties you wear. You like white? Polka dots? Stripes? Nah, that doesn't seem like your style. You look like the kind that would wear pink. Do they have little bows on them? Those are the ones that I like-"

  
"Will you stop it!?" Áine blurted, turning around to face the demon. "How can you be so casual talking about stuff like this?! It's dirty and weird!"

  
"It's not weird for me. I mean, what do you expect coming from an incubus such as myself?"

  
Áine couldn't believe him. She turned away, fidgeting to find a pair of underwear. Finally finding one, she quickly pulled it out and hid it from Xigbar's sight. She turned her head in the demon's direction.

  
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go change."

  
  
She walked across the hallway into another bathroom, locking the door behind her. Áine knew it was pointless due to the fact that Xigbar could teleport, but she still did it anyway to make herself feel safe. Áine took out the underwear she was hiding in her dress, slipping it on. She exited the bathroom, returning back to her bedroom. Xigbar returned back the bed, watching as the girl grabbed her phone. Áine remembered that she left the laptop charging downstairs, so there was no need for her to get anything else. Áine went down stairs, making her way into the kitchen where her laptop was. Xigbar followed behind the girl, hoping that he would be able to gain her attention today. Áine opened her laptop, noticing that the battery was almost low. Guess she didn't charge it after all. The girl let out a frustrated sigh. No matter, she'll just charge it here in the kitchen. Áine plugged the charger into her laptop, sitting down in her seat.

  
Xigbar sat in one of the other seats, scooting himself closer to the girl. She was clearly busy with whatever she was doing, so distracting her wasn't going to be easy. He wasn't allowed to touch her or bother her, but where would be the fun in following the rules? He didn't want to make her too uncomfortable, though. Sure, he's not the best person in the world, but he understands that people need their space. He wanted to at least talk with her and get to know her a little more. He never got to know anything about the girl besides that she has an older sister. Conversing with her would be the first step to gain a stronger bond with her.

  
"So..." Xigbar began. "What's your story, princess?"

  
"Huh?" 

  
"Your life story. What were you like before you came here?"

  
Áine shrugged. "What's there to know? I'm just an average girl." She turned her head to the demon, cocking one eye brow up, turning the tables around him. "Why do you want to know?"

  
"No reason. Just to get to know you since I'm living here with you."

  
"Well, then what about you? What's your story?"

  
"Oh? You wanna know more about me? I thought you would want to tell me your's first."

  
"I told you. There's nothing interesting about me."

  
"There has to be something." Xigbar coaxed. "C'mon, tell me. I'm here all day."

  
"Like I'm gonna tell you anything about me." Áine shot back. "Besides, your the more interesting one. Being a demon and all. If you tell me about yourself in all honestly, then I'll consider telling you about me."

  
The demon grinned. "I hope you like long stories, princess. Because we're gonna be here for a long time."

  
"I'll be listening." 

  
Áine went back to working on her laptop. Xigbar felt slightly upset that she wasn't looking at him, even though she was listening.

  
"Alrighty then..." He muttered. Xigbar cleared his throat, hoping that it would gain the girl's attention, which it didn't. "You know that I'm one of the Seven Princes of Hell, right?"

  
"That's what you told me the first time you decided to show yourself." Áine stated, not batting an eye.

  
"You see; I was the first one to be created by my "father." He's not my biological dad. I don't even call him that. Everyone else just calls him "master." He was the first one of the seven of us. I then came next. And soon my fellow brothers and sisters came after."

  
"And I'm going to guess they represent the other sins?"

  
"Yup."

  
"So your "master" represents which sin?" Áine asked.

  
"Pride. I mean, he thought he was the best out of everyone. How do you think he got kicked out of heaven? Because he was a prideful, arrogant bastard. When you think you're hot shit, you're gonna get a reality check. So when my master got kicked out, he decided to get back at them and create the rest of us to corrupt humanity."

  
Áine stopped, turning to face the demon. She stared at him as if he was spewing out nonsense. Finally having her attention, the demon's eye beamed in delight.

  
"Yeah, not the kind of stuff you hear in your bible school, huh?"

  
The girl shook her head. "You're lying." She turned away, returning back to her laptop. Annoyed, Xigbar placed his hand on the girl's shoulder, turning her to face him.

  
"I know you think it's all bullshit, but believe me, princess. It's all true. Whatever your priests, parents, or whoever taught you all the stuff you know about your gracious god, it's all nothing but a lie."

  
"You're the liar. Demons lie about everything in order to sway people from their faith!" 

  
Áine pushed Xigbar's hand off of her shoulder, returning back to her work. Never had he dealt with such a stubborn human before in his entire existence. She really wasn't going to believe a word he said. People like her were always in denial, even when others spoke the truth about their "god."

  
"Well princess, you told me to tell you about myself. That's what I'm doing, and here you are claiming I'm a liar. Can't you just at least take my words with a grain of salt, at least?"

  
"How about I throw a bag of salt in your face?" Áine snapped.

  
The demon stared at her blankly, slightly offended by her threat. "Well...you'd ruin my other eye...and you would hurt my feelings."

  
"Like you have any feelings."

  
Ignoring her comment, Xigbar continued, "Anyways...after I came into existence, I was given my role; to pursue humans and seduce them. You know, I used to be a completely different person than I am today. I was pretty awkward and quiet, kinda like you."

  
Áine glared at the demon. He laughed at her reaction.

  
"I wasn't as sassy like you. Now, when my brothers and sisters came into existence, my master gave each of them different roles to corrupt humanity. As for the other demons, he just let them do whatever the hell they wanted. He didn't really care, as long as they weren't foiling his plans. Now, you may be wondering; what are your master's plans, Xigbar? Can't tell you, princess. Even though I would love to, I really can't. Not because I'm not allowed to, because I don't even know what the hell he's thinking."

  
"So is your master Lucifer?"

  
"As if. His name isn't associated with light. His name is..." Xigbar paused himself. "I can't even tell you that. It would ruin the suspense."

  
The girl rolled her eyes.

  
"My master's a weirdo, I'll admit that. But there's just something about him that we're all drawn to. May it be his eccentric personality, his weird and mysterious antics, his plans, who knows. Not even me, and I'm the closest to him. Being his first creation and all..."

  
Áine noticed the sudden shift in the demon's voice. He almost sounded like he was...sad? She stopped what she was doing, turning her head to look at the demon. He was not facing her, just staring off in the distance. Áine couldn't see the look in his eye, as his eye was covered by his eyepatch.

  
"Sometimes I always asked him and myself; what is my purpose? My true purpose. Why am I the one that has to burden all of these responsibilities? Why is it me that have to do the master's dirty work, you know?" 

  
The room was silent after Xigbar paused. Áine tried to study the man's expression, however she couldn't tell what he was feeling. He appeared to be sad, but what if he's just pretending to make her feel sympathy for him? What if he's just lying about everything? 

  
"When it came time to perform my duties of corrupting humans, my first few attempts were...awkward. I mean, I just came into existence. I'm a young, inexperienced incubus, having no clue what to do. Can you imagine, me, an incubus, having no idea what sex is? After my first attempts, I started getting the hang of it. I began to understand how perverted and horny humans could be, and man, was it fun teasing them, tormenting them with their own desires. It was fun. Got me off a couple of times, too...but at the same time I felt...nothing."

  
Áine tilted her head in confusion.

  
"I know that I'm not meant to feel anything towards those I seduce. I'm just meant to dirty their souls, claim them, and send them off to hell. Over time, I just grew...empty, I guess. It felt more like a job than anything. Sure, that would seem like a good thing, however when you're like me, you're gonna want something more than just banging a bunch of horny humans, even tormenting them got old. I grew curious about the human mind and began asking questions that nobody had the answers to. Why are they so horny all the time? Why the hell do they fall easily for something that isn't their own kind? I wanted to understand that. I also wanted something else besides sex."

  
"W-what...what did you want?" Áine asked hesitantly.

  
There was nothing but silence from the demon. He turned to the girl, causing her to flinch slightly. He stared at her with a hint of sorrow in his golden eye, responding to her question,

  
"I wanted to become human."

  
Áine studied his expression once more. He seemed genuine with his answer, even if he was a demon. But why would he want to be human?

  
"I grew tired of being empty all the time. I wanted to feel what they felt, to understand why they felt such things. Of course my master found out about this, and shockingly, he allowed me to find these answers. But I still had to follow my duties. Thankfully it was a win-win situation since I got to go search for what I wanted and help with whatever my master wanted. So...I began to possess humans. To make sure they couldn't get rid of me completely, I casted out their soul. This didn't always work out though as I was sometimes shot out of their bodies or cleansed. Where their souls went when I took over their bodies, nobody knows. To hell, heaven, limbo, no one knows."

  
"What happened to you, then? How did you turn back into a demon?"

  
Xigbar looked at the girl. "Simple. I had to die, unless I'm exercised out of the body. When my host becomes weak and old, it died, but not my soul. I would return back to hell, and the cycle would continue. My physical form changed over time as well with the bodies I stole."

  
"So..." Áine pointed at the demon. "That body isn't what your real body looks like?"

  
"Nope."

  
"Then...what did you look like before?"

  
"Not like this." Xigbar grinned, motioning his hands at his chest. "If I were in my first form, I don't think you would find me attractive. I mean, I was a scrawny, little thing. Now I look far sexier than I did before."

  
Áine scoffed and rolled her eyes.

  
"So," Xigbar continued. "I've been possessing humans as my job and as my hobby, casting their souls out of their bodies or just corrupted their souls. I've been doing this for a long time, I don't even know how long. I've had some failed attempts as mentioned earlier, but that never stopped me. Hell, sometimes my host even killed their own bodies in order to get rid of me. My last attempt obviously failed as the people who last lived here moved out within a week. And that leads us to where we are today."

After concluding his ramblings, Xigbar leaned in and asked, "So, you gonna tell me your story now?"

  
"Don't you feel bad?"

  
"Huh?"

  
"Don't you feel bad?" The girl repeated. "About possessing those people? They had lives and families, and you just took it away from them because you wanted to know what it's like to be human? Do you not care what you've done to those people, or where their souls went? They must be scared and lonely...and their families..."

  
Xigbar let out a groan. "Why do you feel bad for them? If it makes you feel any better, the people I possessed weren't really the best. The more darkness and evil in their heart, the easier it is to possess. Besides, they had it coming-"

  
"That doesn't excuse the fact that they had lives!" Áine snapped, shooting up from her seat. "They may have been bad, but they could've been saved, too!"

  
"Oh, Áine, you really are naive, aren't you?" the demon folded his arms. "Feeling pity for terrible people when they don't deserve it? I mean, why feel bad for them? You don't even know them!"

  
"I don't care if I don't know them! What you've done was terrible! And the fact you did it because you wanted to "be human!" It's selfish! You haven't even learned a thing about being human except how to be a terrible person!"

  
Áine slammed her laptop shut, shoving her chair as she added, "Now you've given me another reason why I'd never fall in love with you, you're nothing but a cruel, heartless, and selfish person!"

  
She stormed off, heading back upstairs to her room. Xigbar attempted to follow her, but he stopped in his tracks. Why isn't he following her? Why can't he bring himself to go up there and explain himself? Simple; she won't listen. No matter how much he'd tried to explain, she wouldn't listen to a damn thing. Xigbar heard the door slamming shut, the sound of it echoing through the house. She was really upset. He didn't think that would upset her so much. The people he possessed were really that bad! They were the lowest of the low. Surely she shouldn't feel bad for them. They're terrible people. Why does he feel terrible all the sudden? Xigbar let out a frustrated sigh. Now what was he going to do? Perhaps he should let her cool off.

Or he could go up there and try to reason his actions. Nah, she'll just even more mad and yell at him, maybe throw some stuff at him and continue to call him a monster and other cruel things. How is this ever going to work out between them? Why won't she be willing to just cooperate with him? Man, he's really making it seem like they're dating when they even aren't. Since it didn't seem like it was a good idea to try and reason with the girl, Xigbar decided that he'll just let Áine calm down and come back later. If she doesn't cleanse the house while he's gone. He then disappeared into the darkness, leaving the girl alone in silence.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In the deepest, darkest pits of hell lies a dormant, forgotten chamber. Tormented souls once ended up in this area for judgement and punishment, however it was abandoned long ago as there were too many souls to carry within the chamber, causing some of them to escape into other areas of hell. Now it belongs to the Prince of Pride, where he conducts secret experiments only the other princes of sins know. Xigbar appeared forth in front of the tall, towering doors. There was no one around guarding it. This place wasn't meant to be guarded, as many had been told it was forgotten, so no demon or tortured soul ever ventured there. In all honesty, nobody ventured down here at all. Except for the Seven Princes of Hell.

Xigbar teleported through the chamber doors, not wanting to bother pushing them open. They were sealed tightly, meaning not even he himself could open the doors by pushing them. Not even the strongest can open the doors. Nobody but the Prince of Pride can open the door. As he walked down the long, spiral stairs, he began to wonder where exactly everyone was. Were they already back from their duties, or were they still off meddling with their selected humans? And why the hell were these stairs so damn long? Didn't the master ever think about cutting them up or something? He can't just teleport down. The first time he did that it used up all of his magic and power. It was dangerous to use powers like that recklessly, so instead Xigbar decided to take the long and boring route; walking.

Though he couldn't get physically tired, it still made the demon feel incredibly weak. They definitely need to add some kind of elevator down here, or something. This is going to take forever! After walking for almost centuries, Xigbar reached the last step. Next was walking down the corridors, which thankfully weren't that long, thankfully. As Xigbar began to make his way to the door, he noticed a familiar figure standing near the entrance. His fellow brother and the Prince of Wrath; Ira. He was a little taller than Xigbar. He almost gives the Prince of Lust a run for his money with how beautiful and majestic he appeared. Hell, he could even be mistaken to be an angel, if it weren't for the unihorn plastered on his forehead.

"Luxuria." Ira called out sternly. "You're late again."

"Cut me some slack, would ya? I'm not the first one to be late, you know." 

Ira stared at him blankly, though it was obvious he was annoyed with his behavior as he furrowed his eyebrows. He motioned for Xigbar to enter the room. He did so, having Ira follow behind him. Inside the room was the master's "lair" as he would like to call it. Waiting for them were the others; Invidia, Acedia, and Gula. And of course, was their master. He wasn't facing any of them. Instead, he was sitting down at his desk, looking over pages within his book. The other three lifted their heads up to see Ira and Xigbar enter the room.

"You're late." Invi stated. 

"This is the 2,437th time, Luxuria!" Aced shouted. "How many times are you going to keep us waiting and delay the master?!"

"Calm down, calm down." Xigbar motioned his hands at the bulky demon. "Yeesh, I was still with my human. She's a pretty stubborn one. Cut me some slack."

"You still haven't corrupted your human?" 

They stared at the eldest demon, waiting for his response. He could feel their anger, mainly Aced's. How was he gonna worm his way out of this? Xigbar sighed, attempting to explain himself.

"Look, the girl I encountered is a very firm believer in the big guy upstairs. She's pretty stubborn, too. She won't give into me, no matter how much I tempt her. I would have moved on, but damn, it's so fun messing with her. In the meantime, she'll give in and once she does, her soul will be claimed."

"You said that about the last few humans you've attempted to woo." Gula interjected. "One time it took you their entire life to corrupt them, and you failed."

"There was also that one time when you possessed a human and attempted to become their lover as well." Invi added. 

"Don't forget that one time he took over his past vessel and failed to claim the ex-demon hunter known as Xehanort."

Everyone turned their attention to the voice that spoke up. Their master approached the table that all five were at. The master wore a long, black cloak, obscuring his face. He appeared to be more human than all five of them, excluding his burnt up wings that protruded out of his back. Though none could see his face, the others could sense a playful smile on his face. They bowed down to their master, which he raised a hand and said,

"No need to be so formal. Come on, you guys. We've been over this."

"But you enjoy it when others worship you." stated Gula.

"Yeah, I do."

The others got back up to their feet, awaiting for their master's words. He clapped his hands together, rubbing them as he began,

"So, I heard that you guys are all doing your part, but rumor has it that somebody hasn't collect his current target?"

Xigbar knew the master was talking about him. With all eyes on him, the master asked, "What's going on, Luxu? You've never taken this long with collecting your human souls before. Something keeping you from doing that?"

"Oh, many things." Xigbar began. "For starters, the girl's a big believer in the man upstairs, as I stated before. That's mainly what's keeping her from falling into my hands."

"And the other reasons?" Inquired Invi. "You said there was more."

"I've already stated that the girl's pretty feisty and stubborn. She looks cute and all, but man, she's not easy to corrupt. Also, she's immune to my charm. No human has ever rejected my advances, or even my charm! Many have fallen victim, even the pure believers, but not this girl."

Gula smirked as he commented, "Sounds like you got a handful. But you do enjoy the challenge."

"It's always a game with him." mumbled Aced. "Everything to him is a game."

"Where do you think I got it?" Xigbar stated as he pointed at the master. 

Before they got off topic, the master blurted out, "Alright, alright! Let's not get upset with everybody and start getting off topic. Now Luxu," The master turned his head to the eldest. "We're aware you enjoy messing with humans and playing with them as if they're toys. I get it. I totally get it. You're not the only one here who thinks that. However-"

"I gotta follow orders and do what I'm told. I'm aware." The demon interrupted, rolling his eye.

"Ah, ah, you didn't let me finish! Now, where was I? Oh yeah! You gotta follow orders, yes. But if you keep doing this, we're not going to get to our goal. Also, everyone here is doing their part, which is not fair that you take centuries doing whatever you're doing up there. If you don't do what you're supposed to do..."

The master paused, his cheerful and playful tone switching to a much more colder and dark one as he finished,

"You'll end up just like Ava."

The whole room fell silent, making everyone, even Xigbar himself feel uneasy. Not even a second passed, and the master switched back to his original personality.

"Okay, now that we got that out of the way. Let's check in with everyone else. Ira? How's everything going for you."

"The man I had been following for the past few days has finally fallen into his own madness. He let his anger get to him and committed a terrible act against his family. Because of that, he will not be forgiven. His soul is tainted with the blood of innocents."

"Alright, classic! Murder your own family! Invi?"

"The young woman I had found was easy to claim. She is easily jealous, and when I convinced her that her own boyfriend was cheating on her with a co-worker of his, she went in and killed the both of them. It turned out he was actually faithful to her."

"Another classic! What about you, Gula?"

"My guy just died. He didn't even go to the doctor after eating five tubs of ice cream. Kinda felt bad for the guy."

"Death by ice cream...interesting...Aced?"

"Well, the man I had been following around finally gave into his sin. Due to his incompetence, he's lost his job, his wife, respect, and anything else that made him an admirable man. He's currently laying on his couch, doing who knows what right as we speak."

"It's only a matter of time before the guy realizes what he's done wrong and get his life back together." Gula interjected. "That's what they usually do."

"Oh no, not this man. I've felt the complete loss he had when he lost his job. After that, he just gave up trying looking for another one. I doubt he'll ever recover from that."

It seemed like everyone was doing their job right. Xigbar didn't feel ashamed that he was taking too long. He was usually the one to take the longest when it comes to corrupting souls. Everytime the others got upset with him for taking too long, he often brushed their comments aside. He didn't care if he was ridiculed by them or the master. He didn't understand why he didn't care anymore. Perhaps he had gotten so used to being the last one to do his job that he just doesn't care what everyone thinks anymore. 

"Since almost everyone here has done their job, I guess that concludes with our little meeting. Oh! Wait, I almost forgot;" The master turned to Ira and asked, "Are there any more fragments of Xehanort and his followers?"

"None. Most of his followers have either returned back to their human states, or they have been completely destroyed." Ira replied.

"Well, that's good. That guy was starting to hog up the spot light. Especially with how many versions of him there were. I mean, come on! I'm the personification of pride, not him!"

The others glanced at one another, wondering if the master was going to start rambling like he always does or conclude their meeting. When he noticed their concerned looks, he cleared his throat. "Now then, everyone, you are all excused. Continue doing what you do best and collect more human souls for me."

As everyone teleported out, Xigbar remained in his spot. The master didn't need to say anything to let him know that he wanted to speak with him alone. It was usually like this after a meeting. The master went back to his desk and Xigbar began approaching him in silence. 

"Luxu, it seems like there's something you're hiding from me. You're usually not this quiet during meetings." The master pointed out. "Usually you're making snappy comments or getting into arguments with either Aced or Ira." 

The demon shrugged. "Just didn't have anything to say."

"Nothing?" The master faked a shocked gasp. "Not a single thing? That's not like you at all, Luxu!"

The master was clearly messing with Xigbar. He was aware that his master was suspicious with his current actions. He wasn't planning on giving up any info about Áine. He wouldn't tell him a single thing, especially with her being tied with the light. He wasn't gonna risk the girl's safety.

"Luxu, is this girl...oh, I don't know, interfering with our plans? Is she distracting you? Usually you'd be done by now, but then again, you have ended up falling for some of these humans and got a little curious-"

"No master." Xigbar interrupted quickly. "The girl's just kinda difficult to corrupt. Being a believer of God and all."

"Yeah, and so were the others, but you were able to corrupt them."

"But this is different." The demon began pacing around the room, attempting not to give out too much information on the girl. "She's very dedicated to not fall into my grasps. No matter what I do or what I say, she just won't give in. It doesn't help that she's afraid of me, as well."

"You never really cared if someone was afraid of you, Luxu." The master stated. "If anything, you really didn't care what the humans thought of you, let alone your own brothers and sisters."

Xigbar didn't turn to meet his master's gaze, admitting to his words. "Yeah, that's true. Guess I just...I dunno..."

"What? Do you have feelings for the girl?"

Immediately, the demon scoffed. "As if! She's just another human, why do I care about one, simple human? Besides, they don't like our kind. Well, most of them, but that's besides the point!"

The master let out a playful laugh. "C'mon, Luxu, you're not the only one who's fallen in love with humans. I mean, look at the Watchers! Who do you think lead them down to corrupt humanity? Your's truly! I didn't make them fall in love with the humans, they did that to themselves. And don't get me started on their hybrid children."

He got up from his seat, approaching Xigbar and patted him on the back. "Look, I know you've always been asking questions and wonder about the humans a lot, but there's nothing to know about them. They're flawed creatures. Always have been, and always will be. We, on the other hand, were perfect beings...before _they_ came into the picture. Humans are the reason why fallen angels like myself are...well, fallen and corrupt. Had they been "perfect" and followed the rules, then they wouldn't have to be dragged down here to hell and pay for their sins. Nor would we have to suffer the consequences of their actions. It would be a perfect world!" The master rambled.

"Now, if you keep this up, Luxu, you'll end up just like Ava, and I don't want that to happen to you. I mean, we're technically six princes, not seven, and I don't want that number to drop to five."

Pointing at Xigbar's chest, the master let out one final question, "Now, are you going to keep this silly search going, or are you going to follow orders and do as you're told?"

No words had to be spoken to answer that question. Xigbar met his gaze at the hooded man, glaring at him. He didn't need to see his face to know what expression his master had. With nothing else to say, the master let him go and swapped back to his happy demeanor.

"Alright! Now, go back to what you do best. And don't keep long!"

Xigbar watched as his master returned back to his desk. It seemed like his master was starting to figure out what was going on between him and Áine. If he continued to keep long and stay with the girl, his master would figure out why he was keeping long. He wasn't going to risk the girl's safety or expose the light inside her soul, but he couldn't just leave the girl alone without protection. Even if his bite mark is preventing the other demons from attacking her, it would only be a matter of time before the master got to her. Not wanting to stay any longer, he teleported out of the master's room, leaving no trace.


	5. Realization

Xigbar returned back to the girl's home, teleporting himself into her living room. It seemed like it was already night as there was no sign of any lights, and Áine wasn't anywhere to be seen. The demon guessed that she must already be in bed. Xigbar made his way up to the girl's room, only to find that she was still awake. He noticed that she was on her cellphone, though he wasn't certain what she was doing exactly. Xigbar entered the girl's room in silence. He wasn't sure what he wanted to say to her after their little incident that morning. He felt like he had to apologize, but for what? He didn't do anything wrong! As he lied down next to Áine, she turned over, having her back face away from him. Finally, Xigbar decided to speak up.

"Hey princess, what are you still doing up? You're usually asleep by now."

No response. She wasn't wearing any headphones or earbuds. She was ignoring him on purpose. Not the first time. Xigbar let out a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck. Man, what was he supposed to say? This wasn't the first time he's made a human upset. He was able to win their hearts within a second. Except Áine wasn't like the others. She was different. Stubborn and dedicated. Anything he said to her, she would just ignore. Even if he did apologize, she most likely wouldn't accept it.

"Look, princess...I get that your upset with me. If I were a human and moved into a brand new home only to find out a demon was living there, I'd be pissed too."

"You really think that's why I'm mad with you?" Áine questioned, not batting an eye to the demon.

"Then what are you upset about?"

"Everything?" Áine sat up, turning her phone off as she turned to face him. "Everything about you upsets me. From your rude behavior to you being a demon and the fact that you corrupt people and turn them into demons like you! You hurt innocent people who've done nothing wrong! You act like all of this is a game to you, like we're nothing more than toys."

Her words stung the demon's voidless heart. It hurt because it was true. Deep down Xigbar didn't want to admit it, but she was right. He did see humans as toys at times. He never really saw them as individuals. Mainly because they were weak and small. None of them had powers like demons and angels. Xigbar never considered their feelings at all. Well, he never considered anybody's feelings, even his fellow brothers. He didn't understand why she made him feel so terrible. Was he meant to feel guilty for the things he did? 

"That's what I am to you, isn't it? You act like we're something; like a couple. But that's not the case. You're just using me like you did with the others before me. Once you have my guard down and gained my trust, you'll snatch my soul up and then drag me to the depths of hell." Áine ranted. "You say that's not what you want to do, but it is. It's what you all want to do."

"Well, if you don't want me around, why not get rid of me?" Xigbar questioned. "You could've done that from day one."

Áine didn't answer. She just turned her head away from him.

"It's because you were afraid of me. Isn't it?"

"And what if I am? I have every right to be scared of you!"

"Áine, you don't have to be scared of me. I'm not like all of the other demons, trust me. I don't get pissed off or aggravated easily like they do. Sure, I may be powerful, I could even kill you or take your soul away as we speak, but I'm not gonna. And I got my reasons."

The girl lifted her head up, glaring at the demon as she said, "It's because of your master or whatever, right? Are you not wanting to hurt me because you don't want him to get me?"

"That may be the case." Xigbar admitted. 

"Why would you care anyway? Don't you want to please your master and have me corrupted?"

"No, not really."

"Then what do you want?"

Before the demon could respond, he paused. Áine waited for his answer, only to notice that his expression softened. He turned over to the girl and responded with,

"Honestly, I have no idea anymore."

He sounded genuine in his response, making Áine feel some pity for the demon. But she also doubted him. For all she knew, he was pretending that he was conflicted.

"Ever since I met you, my intentions and my goals have been changing. You're making me feel things that I should not be feeling for a human, and that's a bad thing."

"What do you mean I'm making you "feel things?" This isn't a perverted joke is it?"

"Áine, I'm being serious. If my master finds out that I got a thing for you, you're in big trouble. And since you're a pure soul of light, that's even worse! Demons like him want to smother your light and turn you into a twisted version of yourself, or even turn you into a demon! This world isn't really full of pure hearted people, you know. It's rare to find people like you."

Confused, the girl blinked. She wasn't sure if what she was hearing was true or just a lie. "Well," she began. "why are you so concerned about me all the sudden? Why do you care so much about me? I'm just another human-"

"Because I like you, alright?" The demon blurted. "I liked you the moment you stepped foot into my territory. Yeah, the first thing I wanted to do was fuck you mercilessly since I'm an incubus, that's what we do. But after awhile, I began to feel things that I shouldn't be feeling." The demon paused. "I want to be closer to you and maybe be...something more to you. Which I obviously fucked up since I keep pissing you off and make you feel uncomfortable and scared."

Xigbar sighed in frustration. "Man, I don't know if you secretly have some kind of magical aura to you, because I swear I would never confess such things like this so easily."

Áine didn't say a word. She didn't know what to say. Whether or not Xigbar was lying was beyond her. He looked like he was being serious, and his tone gave that away, too. Then again, there is that slight chance that he could be lying to her. How was she supposed to know if he was telling the truth or not? How can she trust him? Can she even trust him at all with everything he had told her?

"So...you really like me that much that you're willing to sacrifice whatever plans your master has?"

"Maybe." Xigbar replied. "But then again, I don't even know if these feelings I have for you are lust or...something else entirely."

The girl pulled her covers up, telling the demon, "It's probably lust you're feeling."

She turned over on her side, grabbing her headphones from the night stand, turning her music up full blast. Xigbar just sat there, watching the girl as she began to fall asleep. Was that really what he was feeling? Lust? Were these feeling just his lustful desire to claim her soul and corrupt her? What if that wasn't the case at all? The demon wanted to agree with what Áine said, but Xigbar felt something different. For thousands of years, he felt nothing towards his parents. Some he did, but it wasn't intense as this feeling.

This was not lust he was feeling.

Oh god...

Oh no...

The demon clutched his chest as if his heart was racing. If he had a heart, it would be pumping blood furiously in horror and excitement. He was in love with her. He was madly in love with this girl. Xigbar had never felt like this for any human in his life. In the past, he did wish to be human and live among his former partners, but he never thought about anything else other than getting to have sex with them or fulfil his own desires of being human. But this...this was something else entirely.

Not only was this bad, but amazing as well. For once in his existence he felt something else that wasn't just sexual desires. However, this wasn't an entirely good thing. Others would start to catch on and notice his feelings for the girl. If his brothers found out, he would be done for. They would most likely report to the master, and if the master found out...God he didn't want to think about what he would do to her. He would take all the punishment in order to keep her safe. He would even sacrifice his role of being a Prince of Hell to get to be with her as a regular human. He'd literally do anything to keep her safe from any other demon and human in existence.

Xigbar took one more glance at the girl. Of all the humans to fall in love with...he had to fall for her. He ended up falling for a human who was stubborn and devoted to a heartless god. Maybe that wasn't really a bad thing. He did enjoy how determined she was to remain pure and loyal to her said god. Her devotion almost reminded him of his own devotion to his master. Áine may not like it, but they have a lot in common. Xigbar lied himself down, pulling up the covers to his chest. There was no point in doing it since he can't fall asleep, but it was nice to try and be human. It made him feel less like a monster. He stared up at the ceiling, wondering what sleeping was actually like. Was it as nice as people say it was? He hoped he get to try it one day. Being awake constantly tired him. 

The demon attempted to close his eyes, hoping he would find away to drift away into a peaceful sleep. 

Instead, he just lied there, waiting until the sun came up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pacing is not my strongest strength. Can't believe Xiggy's already having feelings for Áine.


End file.
